Loneliness is something that many people struggle with, even in the midst of a city as bustling and friendly as Manchester.
Whilst the likes of speed mate dating events do exist, for some there’s no better way to meet like-minded folk than over a steaming cup of coffee and a good book, which is where The House of Books & Friends comes in.
Set up by local law firm Gunnercooke, this new not-for-profit cafe and independent bookshop has been specifically designed with the intention of helping to combat loneliness in the community.
Due to open in The Manchester Club on King Street later this year, it will sit inside a striking Grade II-listed building owned by developers Bruntwood and will neighbour the first-floor Grand Pacific bar and restaurant, which sits in the former home of Manchester’s Reform Club.
When it opens its doors this Autumn, the cafe and bookshop will offer initiatives for customers and businesses through pay-it-forward schemes, as well as opportunities for visitors to make new connections with others.
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Stocking a range of books for adults and children, the cafe will run a number of projects using the profits from its book sales to engage with those around the shop – working alongside local charities to connect groups including the elderly, new parents and local schools in its mission to combat social isolation.
Speaking on the new project, Darryl Cooke, founder of gunnercooke, said: “Loneliness is a widespread and growing issue in our society. It can affect anyone of any age and can come about from many different causes at any time.
“We believe that bookshops can provide a powerful tool. Reading can connect us physically, intellectually, emotionally, and spiritually.
“When we read we are not alone. Our focus will be to connect all the charities we work with and, at the heart, to develop a culture of connection.
“We have appointed a talented Bookshop Manager from Waterstones, Naomi Self, and are currently recruiting a team whao can bring passion and work alongside us and our charity partners to bring our dream to fruition.”
Feature image – Google maps
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Manchester Airport issues update for anyone flying today after hundreds of cancellations yesterday
Emily Sergeant
Manchester Airport has issued an update for anyone catching a flight today after hundreds of cancellations yesterday.
In case you hadn’t heard, hundreds of flights at several major UK airports – including Manchester Airport – were disrupted by a technical fault at air traffic control provider National Air Traffic Services (NATS) yesterday (8 September 2026), with the incident grounding planes and resulting in numerous cancellations.
According to Flightradar24, more than 1,000 flights were cancelled nationwide, and many passengers were told to expect disruption for the rest of the day.
One of the worst-affected airlines was said to be Ryanair, with around 65,000 passengers affected by the cancellations and delays.
Manchester Airport issued its first statement addressing the matter at 3:15pm yesterday, stating: “We are aware of an issue affecting NATS’ air traffic control service at UK airports, which may result in delays to some departing flights from Manchester Airport today.
“Passengers due to travel are advised to check the latest status of their flight with their airline. We will continue to monitor the situation and share further updates as more information becomes available.”
Now, although the issue has been resolved, Manchester Airport has issued further statements informing anyone travelling today what they can expect.
The airport started off by saying that it is ‘operating as normal’ today, but that passengers are advised to ‘check with their airline for the latest information’.
“A full flight schedule is expected to operate [today] but the airport may be busier due to rescheduled flights,” it added.
Passengers were then thanked for their ‘patience and understanding’ over the past 24 hours.
Featured Image – Ivan Shimko (via Unsplash)
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Hundreds of staff at four Greater Manchester hospitals to strike AGAIN next week
Emily Sergeant
Another round of strikes has been called at a handful of major Greater Manchester hospitals.
Amid ongoing disputes following the first set of strikes at the end of last month, it has now been announced that more than 350 Northern Care Alliance Foundation Trust (NCA) employees – including nurses, clinical support workers and housekeepers – who are members of the union UNISON will once again walk out for three days next week.
According to the union, the dispute centres on the NCA’s use of an outside agency called NHS Professionals (NHSP) to manage overtime.
When covering staff shortages, workers are entitled to time-and-a-half pay – however in some cases, staff earn less than they would on a normal shift, and some have even been missing out on more than £80 per shift, the union added.
Operating theatre staff were previously on picket lines in June, and although an option to resolve the row was initially tabled by NCA bosses, this has now fallen through.
Hundreds of staff at four of Greater Manchester’s hospitals are set to strike next week / Credit: Stephen Andrews (via Unsplash)
This means that staff at Salford Royal Hospital, Royal Oldham Hospital, Rochdale Infirmary, and Fairfield Hospital in Bury are walking out next week on Monday 14, Tuesday 15, and Thursday 17 September.
The union’s North West regional organiser, Kevin Dolan, said the trust had given ‘no indication’ that it’s willing to re-enter negotiations, adding that operating theatre services were ‘chronically under-staffed’ and staff were choosing to work extra shifts to cover shortages.
Ahead of the August strikes, the trust declared a critical incident to help it secure extra support and keep urgent surgery running, while also announcing that some procedures would have to be postponed.
Understandably, some disruption is expected at each of the hospitals on strike days.
But Gertie Nic Philib, who is the chief people and strategy officer at the Northern Care Alliance, said that the trust will do ‘everything we can to minimise the impact on patients’ and ‘maintain high standards of care and quality at all times.’
“We also have contingency plans in place for emergency situations,” they concluded.
Georgina Pellant -
25th July 2022 
