In celebration of their ‘new look’, beloved Leeds-based brewery Northern Monk are giving away free pints of their iconic pale ale across various locations tomorrow, including right here in Greater Manchester.
So much for ‘it’s grim up North’ — don’t think so, mate.
The legendary independent brewery, based in the Yorkshire town of Holbeck, has been serving up its iconic beers across the North since 2013 and you don’t have to go far to find some of their creations on tap around here either.
Their most famous pale ale ‘Faith’ is now arguably the best core pale ale in the country and is the cornerstone of their lineup that helped make them a household name that we all know and love. Better still, you can get your hands on a few free ones this Wednesday (20 February).
Their new look.The classic Northern Monk pint being given away for free.Credit: Northern Monk/The Hoot Leeds
As per The Hoot, the brewery has recently been developing a ‘new look’, changing their logo and re-branding ahead of the ‘the next chapter for Northern Monk’.
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Whilst still undoubtedly recognisable, they’ve had a bit of a refresh — much like their pints (wahey!) — and we’ve got to say they’re looking very smart indeed.
So, in celebration of this, they’re feeling rather generous and are giving away a total of 1200 free pints of Faith across 12 different venues in the UK tomorrow.
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Available from 5pm onwards and for one day only, we know where we’ll be heading after work.
Some sage advice for people looking to enjoy the freebies there, as well.
Yes, it’s as simple as that: head to any of the venues from 5pm on Wednesday, 21 February and there’ll be a whopping 100 pints of Northern Monk in each ready to be handed over to you lovely lot.
It’s strictly one per customer but you’ll hear no complaints from us — a free pint is a free pint.
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The Manchester venues areas follows:
Northern Monk Refectory, Tariff Street – Northern Quarter
Trof, Thomas St – Also NQ
Folk, Burton Road – West Didsbury
Announcing the news to social media, Northern Monk said: “Times they are a-changin’… As we enter our 11th year, we’re embarking on the next chapter of Northern Monk. You’ll see some changes unfold in the coming months; join us as we begin to turn the pages.” We’ll cheers to that.
“We’re planning a few parties to officially ‘launch’ the new look. Across 12 different venues on Wednesday 21 February. There’s a free pint of Faith in it for you…”
They’ll also be giving away pints at venues in Bradford, Leeds, Sunderland, Glasgow and London.
So whatever you’ve got planned for 5pm tomorrow, cancel it and head to any of these cracking spots and cheers to Northern Monk’s new look.
‘I wouldn’t change this career for anything’: trainee probation officer amidst new recruitment drive in Greater Manchester
Danny Jones
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.
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.
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.
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.
Manchester launches new fund to help support city’s ‘struggling’ grassroots music venues
Emily Sergeant
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.”
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.
Danny Jones -
20th February 2024 
