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AO Arena is back this weekend after 78 weeks without concerts as Blossoms take to the stage

Blossoms will take to the stage at their hometown arena to conclude their most recent UK tour.

The Manc Audio The Manc Audio - 16th September 2021

It’s been a long time coming – but this Saturday, Manchester’s AO Arena will open its doors once again to a sell-out crowd of Blossoms fans as the Stockport indie band perform their first headline show at the iconic venue.

This means it’s been 78 weeks and a whopping 553 days since live music last rocked the arena.

Blossoms will take to the stage at their hometown arena to conclude their most recent UK tour, before they’re set to support fellow Manchester indie rockers Courteeners at Emirates Old Trafford later this month, and even join forces with Northern 80s pop icon Rick Astley for two intimate gigs playing only the songs of Manchester band The Smiths.

Blossoms’ most recent studio album, 2020’s Foolish Loving Spaces, went all the way to number one in the UK album chart.

The band have now sold 604,747 albums in their career to date worldwide, including more than 340,000 in the UK, and have amassed over 484 million global streams – 319 million of those streams in the UK.

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Blossoms sell-out gig at the arena – which celebrated its 25th anniversary back in July 2020 – is also the first time the venue opens under new sponsorship, as back in September, 2020, it welcomed online electricals retailer AO as the new headline sponsor and rebranded as the AO Arena with a fresh new look.

The partnership is said to highlight AO’s commitment to bringing live music and entertainment back to the heart of Manchester.

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As well as the Bolton-born brand’s famous green smile, visitors to the arena will have the opportunity to enjoy exclusive ‘money-can’t-buy’ experiences, as well as on the spot ‘surprise and delight’ activations on the arena’s concourse, courtesy of the retailer.

In preparation to make the event as inclusive as possible once doors reopen for the big welcome back, the venue has been working hard behind the scenes over the past few months, and back in June 2020, it was even awarded GOLD status by Attitude is Everything – the disability-led charity with over 20 years’ experience improving Deaf and disabled people’s access to live entertainment.

AO Arena has said that its number one priority for the Blossoms gig is making sure that everyone’s visit is as safe and enjoyable as possible, and so has activated its ‘VenueShield’ programme – a comprehensive and best-in-class hygiene protocol that’s in practise at more than 325 ASM Global facilities around the world.

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Blossoms will take to the stage at their hometown arena to conclude their most recent UK tour / Credit: Facebook (Blossoms)

And through the arena’s partnership with Unilever brand, Lifebuoy, there are plenty of hand sanitiser dispensers around the venue to make it easy for everyone to sanitise their hands as they move around the arena – which will “inspire confidence” in the return to live events.

As restrictions have been lifted, the venue is asking music fans to enjoy themselves on Saturday with consideration to others by wearing a mask if possible and being prepared to show, if requested by a member of staff, proof that they do not currently have COVID-19, or that they have had both doses of the vaccine, or that they have previously had COVID-19 within the last six months.

Also in the name of safety, specialist detection dogs will be helping the venue to deliver a safe and secure environment for all visitors and employees.

It’s going to be a heck of a return to live music on the biggest stage in Manchester.

Featured Image – AO Arena

News

‘I wouldn’t change this career for anything’: trainee probation officer amidst new recruitment drive in Greater Manchester

Danny Jones Danny Jones Probation service officer trainee jobs Manchester

We sat down with Lea, who is currently working towards her Professional Qualification in Probation – or PQiP for short – to become a fully qualified probation officer here in Greater Manchester.

Here’s Lea on life as a trainee probation officer…

So, how did you get into this particular career, and what made you want to jump into the probation service, specifically?

I’ve always had an interest in the legal world and love watching crime dramas. I started off in courts admin, where I was exposed to a lot of different roles in the Criminal Justice System, like probation officers, solicitors, judges and so on.

probation and prison service jobs greater manchester
Credit: The Manc Group

I decided that was the kind of career I wanted, and I feel like, with probation, if you like watching crime documentaries and understanding human behaviour, then it might be the perfect career for you. It was kind of the moment everything clicked into place for me.

I’m sure training to be a probation officer involves a little more than your average nine-to-five, but what does a typical day look like for you?

Every day is different. You do have different priorities; a lot of the time, you prioritise things around emergencies and what is most urgent.

For example, today one of the offenders I work with, who’s only 19, got kicked out of his house, so I’ve been trying to find him a place to sleep tonight to keep him off the streets.

Criminal behaviour is often about taking shortcuts, I would say, so it’s prioritising that situation to keep him on the straight and narrow, but also making sure that the public is protected. I think that the number one priority with probation is public protection.

Typical days can also include making sure offenders follow what they’ve been ordered to do by the court, whether that’s Community Payback or other measures.

On top of that, it’s about making sure they have the support they need. Some people struggle to keep appointments, so we carry out referrals and mental health checks to help them stay on track. 

probation office manchester
Credit: The Manc/Ministry of Justice (supplied)

These all sound like quite emotional situations to be thrown into. How do you deal with the emotional side and high-stress scenarios?

It can be hard on you emotionally. Although you’re dealing with offenders, they’re often in the situation they’re in for a multitude of reasons. It’s about trying to keep a cool head and manage the situation strategically.

You can’t do it on your own – it’s impossible – but as a probation officer, you are the first point of call. You’re kind of like their ‘life manager’ working to make sure they’re okay, as well as following the law.

It sounds like very important and fulfilling work. What’s the training process like?

As a trainee probation officer, it is difficult at times because they really do throw you into stuff, but they do it strategically, slowly increasing the level of cases you work on and providing opportunities to shadow more experienced colleagues.

I can easily lean on my colleagues, and in addition to the practical training, there’s the university side of it as well. It’s quite a dynamic role, and you still benefit from the split between study and practice.

How do you unwind after this job?

That’s a really great question. I cycle to work, and that’s my silent time, so even that hour alone of cycling is a way to keep me off my phone and allows my brain to properly switch off.

I think that’s really important because you can do everything you possibly can to help offenders, and you need to take care of yourself, too.

Do you think you can make that impact during your working day?

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I certainly like to think so. I think it’s important that you do take breaks as well; people forget that it’s not a normal job. You will have to be able to deal with challenging offenders, but it’s just about being resilient and following what you learn in training, remembering it’s about the circumstances they’re in and trying to understand that.

And do you get satisfaction and fulfilment from that?

Oh yeah, absolutely. In probation, there is that pattern of people making the same mistakes over and over again, and you’ll see them over and over again for years, but then you remember that people are capable of change – it just takes longer for some than others. When I’m struggling, I always think of those I have helped turn their life around and take pride in knowing they’re doing better and are happier.

Is there one particular case that springs to mind?

Yeah, there’s one particular offender I always think of. When he first came to court, he wouldn’t speak to anybody, and even when he went on probation, he just wouldn’t say anything or even show up to anything.

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He was then allocated to me – and sometimes it’s not necessarily the officer, but it’s something about that emotional connection, or it could just be how you get along with people – that finally clicked.

I did a lot of work with him; he was homeless, jobless, had an addiction problem and wasn’t compliant with his court order, but now he’s housed, has a job, and he’s doing really well. 

probation service trainee
probation officer jobs manchester
Credit: The Manc

That’s such a lovely story. What skills or qualities would you say are needed to do this type of work? 

The top one would be resilience. Resourcefulness, communication and organisation. Being able to stay calm is a really big one, too. 

What other benefits are there to a role in the Probation Service?

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I feel like lots of people don’t realise that this is one of those roles where you can start at the very bottom and work your way up, and there are so many areas that you can work in the Probation Service

It’s like the NHS: so many different lanes you can go down, different specialities, and it is a Civil Service job, so the pension is really good.

Of course, and lastly, if you were to give one piece of advice to someone interested in a career in the Probation Service, what would it be?

Persevere. It’s not always going to be easy, and you’re going to go through a lot, because it’s a hard job and you’re dealing with challenging people, but you just have to push through because it does get easier.

It is such a rewarding job, and I wouldn’t change this career for anything.

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Interested?

If Lea’s story has made you think a career in HM Prison and Probation Service might be for you, you can find out more about the opportunities in Manchester on the Service’s recruitment website.

You can hear from Vinay, a Community Payback placement coordinator who works in the Probation Service, in the video below.

For all the latest news, events and goings on in Greater Manchester, subscribe to The Manc newsletter HERE.

Featured Images — The Manc Group/MoJ (supplied)

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Manchester launches new fund to help support city’s ‘struggling’ grassroots music venues

Emily Sergeant Emily Sergeant Live music crowd

An important new fund has been launched to help support Manchester’s local grassroots music venues that are ‘struggling’.

Manchester City Council has teamed up with national charity Music Venue Trust (MVT) to launch the fund as a ‘rapid’ and ‘targeted’ intervention to protect the small venues that make Manchester’s music scene and culture world-renowned.

The launch of the new fund comes following reductions to the Retail, Hospitality, and Leisure Business Rates Relief Scheme.

Council and MVT say this new initiative is designed primarily to ‘ease the financial pressure’ caused by Manchester’s grassroots music venues having to transition to these new business rates tariffs.

The fund aims to recognise and highlight the ‘vital’ contribution that grassroots music venues make to Manchester’s economy and to its identity as one of the world’s leading music cities.

This initiative has been made possible through the previously-reported Council revenue generated by live concert arena, stadium, and festival activity during what has been a record-breaking year – particularly summer – for major events throughout the city.

Applications for the fund are now open to venues.

Grant applicants must be able to demonstrate that they are a location in Manchester that has a dedicated live music or performance space, puts on live music at least three times per week or consistently feature it as part of a wider cultural programme, and has an organisational focus on music – with other services being subsidiary or dependent on music activity.

The size of grant awards will be based on a venue’s business rates liabilities – with the maximum amount that can be applied for being £20,000.

Manchester has launched a new fund to help support the city’s ‘struggling’ grassroots music venues / Credit: Rahul Kukreja | Joshua Hanson (via Unsplash)

“We understand the importance of smaller venues, the stages where talent is nurtured and the city’s music begins,” commented Cllr Bev Craig, who is the leader of Manchester City Council, as the new fund was announced this week.

“We also know that across the country, grassroots venues are struggling, and that’s why in Manchester, we’re taking action to ensure that real support reaches our venues quickly.

“This swift delivery is virtually unheard of in the sector, but we are determined to innovate.”

Read more:

Applications for funding are now live on the Music Venue Trust website and will close on Friday 28 November, and payments will then be made by Saturday 31 January 2026.

You can find out more and apply here.

Featured Image – Nathan Mullet (via Unsplash)

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