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Manchester Pride to axe live music festival as it ‘refocuses its efforts’

Daisy Jackson Daisy Jackson - 14th February 2022

There are big changes afoot for Manchester Pride’s August celebrations this year, as the charity announces its live music event will be axed.

Manchester Pride have said that they they ‘got some things wrong last year’ and have now been working with LGBTQ+ communities to refocus.

Following a six-month review, the large-scale music concert will be dropped from the plans, though many elements of the celebrations will go ahead – including the parade, the Gay Village Party, and the candlelit vigil.

The Superbia Weekend, Youth Pride MCR, Family Pride MCR and the Human Rights Forum are all also unaffected by the altered plans.

In 2019, Ariana Grande and Years and Years headlined MCR Pride Live at Depot Mayfield, while last year Yungblud, Zara Larsson and Sigala topped the bill at First Street.

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Annie Mac at Manchester Pride Live 2021. Credit; Carl Sukonik

Before then, the live music portion of the Manchester Pride Festival had always been smaller, and centred around the carpark at the heart of the Gay Village.

The consultation found that LGBTQ+ communities wanted Manchester Pride to communicate with communities more on their events and grant-giving, and to ‘refocus its efforts back onto its activist roots’.

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The charity is promising to ‘build a better Manchester Pride’ that’s accessible to all – that includes a commitment to low income tickets and quiet spaces at events.

Its board of trustees will also ‘be more visible and connected with communities’, it says.

This year’s celebrations will now be focused around the Gay Village Party, which sees people spilling out from the bars on Canal Street and the surrounding area.

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A fixed amount or percentage from each ticket purchased will go directly to the community fund.

Paul Wheeler, chair of Manchester Pride’s board of trustees, said: “I’d like to say a big thank you to the thousands of individuals who had their say on the future direction of the charity.

“Manchester Pride should be something everyone feels proud of and can see a little bit of themselves reflected back in.

“We acknowledge we got some things wrong last year and we’re sorry for the upset and frustration this caused.

Yungblud in 2021 at Manchester Pride

“It is important that Manchester Pride reflects what Manchester’s LGBTQ+ communities tell us they want and this review has shown how we can do better.

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“The communities have been clear in saying their must-have elements over the weekend specifically include The Parade, The Candlelit Vigil and the Gay Village Party, whereas MCR Pride Live was seen as less important to furthering our cause.

“First and foremost, we’re a campaigning charity fighting for equality and opportunities for LGBTQ+ individuals across Greater Manchester, and the response from across our communities corroborates that position.

“We want more input into the charity’s operation, with a greater focus on campaigning, lobbying and education, whilst seeing fewer celebrity headline acts at MCR Pride Live.

“That’s why we’re going back to our roots, our Pride celebration is about protest. As a result, we’ve listened to the communities’ comments, and will address their recommendations to refocus efforts back towards activism.

“Furthermore, we will commit a fixed amount or percentage of each ticket purchase to Pride events directly to the community fund and provide clarity on where the remainder of the amounts generated from ticket sales is attributed.

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The Charity says further details will be revealed on the Manchester Pride line up in the coming months.

Paul continued: “The organisation has sought to address big questions and concerns, such as the role of Pride as a protest movement as opposed to a pop concert, how Pride can be more accessible, inclusive and safer, and how we go about giving grants.

Read more: Mancunian Way speed limit to be slashed in bid to tackle ‘particularly hazardous’ stretch of road

“We’ve also tried to address how we can be more transparent and connected as an organisation to Greater Manchester’s LGBTQ+ communities, surrounding the themes of communities, activism, giving and transparency.

“Ensuring the charity now reflects the needs of our communities is now our focus. We don’t see this review as the end of the conversation, rather it’s the start. This report marks the beginning of more co-creation, more transparency and more listening.”

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To find out more about Manchester Pride and the details of its consultation, visit manchesterpride.com/prideinourfuture.

Featured image: Gemma Parker

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‘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?

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.

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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