Manchester has always been a city that takes pride in its charitable spirit — we band together around here, especially in tough times — so when we came across the incredible work children’s organisation Destination Florida have been doing for over three decades.
Created all the way back in 1988, Destination Florida is a children’s charity, based out of Manchester, that has been taking children with medical problems on what they rightly call the “trip of a lifetime” for more than 35 years now.
Starting out as Destination Disney, the charity was created by Dr David Evans and Sister Alex Shaw, the idea was inspired by when a group of northern-based children were nominated to go on a trip to Florida through a London-based charity but were sadly left unselected.
As a result, the founders wanted to make sure they could provide the same incredible opportunity to those with life-threatening illnesses and conditions in the North, and so Destination Florida was born.
Similar to the Make-A-Wish Foundation, the charity organises a team of doctors, nurses, physiotherapists and non-medical volunteers to take over 70 children to Florida to enjoy the likes of Universal and Disney World and more, all while providing for their full medical needs.
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Taking kids aged between 7-16 years old, whose medical conditions can vary from acute or chronic to life-limiting, the annual trip runs for seven weeks, with their dedicated parents and full-time carers also being rewarded a well-earned break whilst safe in the knowledge that they’re in the best of hands.
Since they have fully qualified medical professionals with them, not to mention a hard-working team of fully vetted volunteers, Destination Florida are able to deliver all manner of therapies while over in the States.
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In 2020, the Manchester charity was honoured with the prestigious Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service and held two huge fundraisers, generating crucial funds both for the trips and the children’s families.
Starting out with a group of just 25 children more than 30 years ago, Destination Florida has gone on to provide this wonderful opportunity to hundreds of children who might have otherwise not had the chance.
Now fully back up and running after the uncertainty of the pandemic, this year’s trip takes place from 8-15 September and you already know the destination.
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If you would like to invite you to nominate any child that you feel may be appropriate for the trip, you can do so via the website, and the same goes for if you want to donate or volunteer.
It’s a truly wonderful cause that we’re proud to say comes from Manchester.
Andy Burnham to begin rolling out new ‘everyday fixes’ for Brits amid cost of living crisis
Emily Sergeant
A series of ‘everyday fixes’ to help combat the rising cost of living crisis are soon to be rolled out nationwide.
Kicking off with two measures today, new Prime Minister Andy Burnham has announced that he plans to ban retailers from making ‘misleading’ claims to customers about discounts.
The Government says shoppers have ‘increasingly complained’ about outlets artificially inflating prices to give a false sense of value, such as increasing prices only to then immediately advertise ‘discounts’ to make savings look larger than they really are, which goes on to create an uneven playing field for honest competitors.
The Prime Minister also wants to see an end to so-called ‘subscription traps’, where people find it hard to cancel their subscriptions, and contracts are automatically renewed at a higher cost.
Set to come into force in January 2027 and saving people an average of £14 a month for every unwanted subscription, the changes will mean businesses will need to provide clearer up-front information, regular reminders. and a ‘much easier’ exit to contracts.
Andy Burnham to begin rolling out new ‘everyday fixes’ for Brits amid cost of living crisis / Credit: gov.uk | Piotr Cichosz (via Unsplash)
A new 14-day cooling-off period will also be introduced to let consumers cancel after a trial or long-term contract renews.
Certain charitable memberships, like the ones for cultural and heritage organisations for example, will be excluded from the new subscription rules due to the fact they have a unique role in preserving the nation’s history, landscapes, and cultural collections.
The Prime Minister says he is ‘determined’ to use every chance he gets to restore fairness and take pressure off people.
“I know people are sick and tired of rip-off discounts and subscription traps,” Andy Burnham said. “Westminster has got used to telling people that everyday hassles like this are just part of life, but I don’t think that’s right, especially when the cost of living continues to weigh heavily on so many people’s lives.”
He concluded: “These are just two of the everyday fixes we’re going to be rolling out.
“We want to put more money in people’s pockets and give people hope that politics really can work for them and their everyday lives.”
Featured Image – Piotr Cichosz (via Unsplash)
News
Bury man jailed for life after being found guilty of murder at New Year’s Eve party
Emily Sergeant
A man has been handed a life sentence following the murder of another man at a New Year’s Eve celebration in Bury.
Antony Junior Murray, aged 25 of Tarn Drive in Bury, appeared at Manchester Minshull Street Crown Court last week (7 August) where he was sentenced to life imprisonment with a minimum of 18 years after being found guilty of murder.
It follows the death of 23-year-old Joe Burton on New Year’s Eve last year.
Greater Manchester Police (GMP) explained that emergency services were called to reports of a disturbance at an address on Tarn Drive at approximately 11:56pm on New Year’s Eve (31 December 2025), and upon arrival, officers discovered Joe ‘unresponsive’ at the bottom of a staircase with a significant amount of blood around him.
Despite the best efforts of paramedics, Joe was pronounced dead at 12:43am on New Year’s Day (1 January 2026).
A post-mortem examination later confirmed he had died from a single stab wound to the back.
At the scene, Murray initially denied any involvement and claimed he had returned home from a pub to find the victim unresponsive, however officers quickly identified inconsistencies in his account.
Initial enquiries – including phone and location data – showed that Murray had been at the address throughout the evening.
Joe had been in a relationship with Murray’s sister and had been invited to the address earlier that evening, and then further investigation revealed that Murray, Murray’s sister, the victim. and another individual had been at the property together, drinking and setting off fireworks to see in the New Year.
CCTV footage recovered from the scene captured the events leading up to the incident, including the fatal attack, and showed Murray assaulting Joe and placing him in a headlock, before proceeding to stab him in the back.
Following a detailed police investigation, Murray was charged with murder and was subsequently found guilty at court.
“Murray carried out a brutal attack on Joe and then attempted to mislead officers about his involvement,” explained Duncan Thorpe, who was the Senior Investigating Officer on the case.
Danny Jones -
21st April 2023 
