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Manchester restaurants will help to raise money for the homeless this Christmas

Just £1 on top of your bill can go towards the creation of beds, housing, mental health advice and training and job support.

Georgina Pellant Georgina Pellant - 22nd October 2021

Manchester’s restaurants will be doing their bit to help vulnerable people in need this Christmas by partnering up with the national StreetSmart campaign.

The campaign, which launches on November 1, will see Manchester diners given the option to add £1 donation to their bill – with all funds raised going directly to local charitable organisations who help Mancs living on the streets and in unsuitable temporary accommodation.

Restaurants confirmed to take part this year so far include Ramona, Street Urchin, Evuna, Batard, Tampopo, 20 Stories, Banyan, Firehouse, Solita and Bottega by. San Carlo at Selfridges. 

Across previous years, the campaign has raised over £10million in total – with ALL monies going directly to local organisations, thanks to the generosity of sponsors Land Aid.

The Mayor of Greater Manchester Andy Burnham speaking to a homeless man / Credit: GMCA

Whilst StreetSmart works with restaurants across the country, this year it has partnered with the Greater Manchester Mayor’s charity to ensure that donations made in Manchester restaurants not only stay in the local area but make the greatest impact possible.

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This year’s campaign will run throughout the Christmas period, a time when many of us are out indulging ourselves in bars and restaurants.

Funds will go towards essential services like the creation of beds, housing, mental health advice and training and job support.

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It’s the busiest time of the year for the hospitality scene, with diners tending to spend much more in venues over this period than they do throughout the rest of the year.

Tim Heatley from Capital & Centric, Chair of Greater Manchester Mayor’s Charity, launched the scheme at partner restaurant The Firehouse on Swan Street last night.

Speaking to a selection of businesses from Manchester’s hospitality scene, he said: “In the Greater Manchester Mayors charity we believe that homelessness has no place in our city, and so we push innovative ideas and ways in which we can reduce homelessness.

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Inside The Firehouse at Ramona, one of the restaurant’s that has partnered with StreetSmart this year / Image: Ramona

“COVID has been particularly hard for the hospitality sector hasn’t it, it’s been pretty tough on all of you, which is even more heartwarming that so many of you are prepared to support this streetsmart initiative.

“But it’s been particularly hard of course for people who are at risk of being homeless or who are already homeless’s well so it’s even more important right now that we do whatever we can to support homelessness initiatives.”

The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has had a huge impact on people already living in poverty and the homeless community in Greater Manchester, with an increase in the number of people being made homeless sadly set to rise as the pandemic continues

The funds raised by StreetSmart partners in Manchester will go towards the critical work of organisations including The Greater Manchester Mayor’s Charity tackling rough sleeping in the city, as well as other local homegrown charities helping to improve the lives of homeless young people.

These organisations are focused on helping individuals break the cycle, regain their dignity and rebuild their lives via positive action, as well as providing crisis and emergency shelter and food during the pandemic.

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In previous years, Manchester restaurants have raised more than £37,000 for the campaign as a result of generous locals dipping into their pockets.

Greater Manchester Mayor, Andy Burnham, commented: “I have been so encouraged by the number of Greater Manchester businesses who have stepped forward to help with our efforts to reduce rough sleeping and homelessness.

“We are lucky to be home to many brilliant hospitality businesses which aren’t just great places to go, but which also are prepared to use their success for the benefit of others.

“That’s the Greater Manchester way and long may it be the case. StreetSmart takes this work to the next level and I hope our businesses and the generous Greater Manchester public will get on board with it. We have a huge challenge ahead in preventing a rise in homelessness.”

Feature image –  Evelyn Simak 

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Manchester’s 24 Hour Run Against Homelessness raises a whopping £50k for ‘A Bed Every Night’

Danny Jones Danny Jones The Manchester 24 Hour Run Against Homelessness fundraising tally

This city can stand up and pat itself firmly on the back after this year’s 24 Hour Run Against Homelessness raised a whopping £50,000 for the Greater Manchester Mayor’s Charity.

Manchester, you truly are incredible.

Returning for the sixth time last week, the 2024 edition of Manchester’s annual fundraising 24-hour relay event was a bumper year and then some, as not only did they cruise past their initial target of £25k but there were records all over the place for distances covered and attendance.

With well over 1,000 runners from all over the region descending upon host venue Freight Island and the city centre route at various different points during the 24 hours, we can well and truly say us Mancs ran our absolute socks off for a crucial cause.

Starting from 12pm on Wednesday, 13 November and running until noon the next day, those involved completed a total of 40 consecutive laps with some of those taking part barely stopping for even a moment’s rest in between each one, no matter how dark, cold or painful it got.

Translating to the equivalent of 1,666 beds for those in the Greater Manchester homeless community and counting, the team – comprised of 86 volunteers, hugely supportive overnight security staff and countless runners – managed to generate nearly double the amount of donations raked in last year.

If you want more context, prior to the 2024 event, The 24 Hour MCR Run had raised approximately £52,807.99 over the course of its entire first five years, meaning they’ve basically just matched that overall tally in just one day – albeit a very long one.

The frankly ridiculous tally couldn’t have been reached without help from donation-boosting sponsors AutoTrader and Together Co. (as well as help from Accenture and Mistral), but even without those additions, it was still by far and away the most successful year in the event’s history.

Countless runners booked time off or got laps done on their lunch hours, with many even coming after work on the Wednesday to then return and put in even more graft the following morning before their shift. Simply inspirational stuff.

Volunteers and run leaders like Marv Lucas, Shomak Chakrabarti, Jay Orris, Molly Glenister-Doyle and many others each smashed 100km or more; even The Manc managed to rack up 110k between us.

The 24 Run Against Homelessness
The Manc doing their bit
manchester 24 hour homeless run
Runners doing their 5k laps of Manchester city centre
running event freight island
Still hundreds there come nightfall
andy burnham speaks at charity running event in manchester
Burnham gave a rousing and emotional speech
(Credit: The 24 Hour Run Against Homelessness)

One Chorlton Runner, 55-year-old Ian Sharpe, set the men’s record with a simply staggering 150k, while Natasha Barclay smashed the women’s record with an unbelievable 117k just 10 days after running almost the same distance at The 24 Hour Run Against Homelessness‘ debut event in Birmingham.

Joining for the busy 7pm, when hundreds of people from Greater Manchester-based run clubs, local businesses and more lined the steps of Freight Island, Mayor Andy Burnham was in attendance and admitted that the immense turnout brought “a tear to the eye.”

Labelling the ever-growing initiative a prime example of “Greater Manchester in action” and community engagement at its finest, it was visible to see how taken aback he was not only by the sheer number of runners but by how much the event has grown since its inception.

Greater Manchester Mayor’s Charity (GMMC) CEO, Dr Fran Darlington-Pollock – who also put in some laps herself along with members of her team – was equally blown away by the 2024 event.

Talking to The Manc, she said: “The 24 Hour Run raises vital funds to support our flagship scheme, ‘A Bed Every Night’ (ABEN), providing far more than just a bed for the night but vital wrap-around support to help get people back on their feet.

“No one should have to spend a night on the streets, particularly as we head into the colder, harsher months. Raising funds for ABEN helps to get us closer to a point when we can say we have truly eradicated the need for rough sleeping.” Safe to say a big dint was put in the problem this month.

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Speaking on an overwhelmingly successful 24 hours, co-founder Tom Lewis said: “I’m genuinely overwhelmed with the support we received for this year’s event and the Manchester running community and local companies coming together to help make a real impact in the region.

“As for the future, we plan to come back bigger than ever each year. We’ve set an ambitious precedent by doubling our fundraising total for the last few years, which could mean we’re looking at £100,000 next year. At the moment that seems like a dream, but I said the same about £50,000 and here we are.

“Also, expansion into London would be amazing and after launching The 24 Hour Run Against Homelessness in Birmingham earlier this month, the goal is for it to reach Manchester levels too.”

It goes without saying that raising this much money for such a vitally important problem in the space of 24 hours is phenomenal and we couldn’t possibly be any prouder of all those who took part.

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The supplementary JustGiving page is actually still active for 2024, so you can still donate if you want to add to that already huge sum but, for now, well done to everyone and we’ll see you next year.

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

Featured Images — The 24 Hour Run Against Homelessness

News

Police appeal to find next of kin after man found outside Palace Theatre

Daisy Jackson Daisy Jackson Police appeal to find next of kin after man found outside Palace Theatre

Police are trying to track down the family of a man who died after being found unresponsive outside the Palace Theatre in Manchester.

The man, who has now been named as Jonathan Bernard Carroll, was seen outside the city centre theatre at around 6.30am on Tuesday 12 November.

Emergency services rushed to the scene and Mr Carroll was taken to hospital.

Tragically, the 47-year-old passed away a short time later.

A large cordon was in place on Whitworth Street and Oxford Road while police and security attended the incident.

Greater Manchester Police are now appealing to find his next of kin.

It’s believed that he resided in the Salford area of Greater Manchester.

Anyone with any information should contact the Coroner’s Office on 0161 856 1376.

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Featured image: The Manc Group

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