All the way back in February 2021, one of the city’s most iconic charities launched a dedicated fund to help determined young Mancunians take the next step in education, entrepreneurship, employment, or training.
It then provides them with the resources needed to achieve these ambitions.
The charity has so far awarded over £70,000 to 45 successful applicants, with an average individual grant of around £1,500, but while the maximum MRSF grant value is publicly stated as £2,000, the charity’s Trustees have on occasions awarded more than this in certain cases, when they see a young person with ambition and a clear need for greater support – and now, that maximum grant award is raising to a life-changing £5,000.
We Love MCR Charity says the ‘Rising Stars Fund’ provides the opportunity for young people to achieve, when the one thing holding them back is their circumstance, and the charity is keen to “remove barriers to success”.
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The charity says the raising of the funding limit is so that it doesn’t deter young people whose needs were not covered by the previously-published ceiling of £2,000
In February 2021, we publicly launched the Manchester’s Rising Stars Fund, with the aim of removing financial barriers to success faced by young Mancunians 🌟
£75,000+ and 45 talented Mancs later… We're making a BIG change to the Fund, read below 👇https://t.co/E9NAe3cZIU
As mentioned, in previous instances, higher grants have been awarded by the charity, and one of these cases was Eden – an accomplished singer, pianist, composer and producer who earned himself a place at the prestigious Royal Conservatoire in Scotland to do a BMUs in Vocal Studies, but his chances of taking up that place were slim due to great misfortune in the family, which left him living in a homeless shelter and unable to afford necessary equipment for his course.
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The charity’s Trustees awarded Eden £3,900 to not only to purchase the equipment he needed to excel, but also to cover a portion of his accommodation costs to reduce the burden on his shoulders.
More recently, Boshra was awarded £3,600 to embark on an ambitious videography project that she believes will allow her to stand out in the spoken word and performance industry that she has so much passion for.
Despite her long-standing commitment to her artistic craft, and being an active ambassador for the Rio Ferdinand Foundation, she hasn’t had the financial backing to have been able to develop her talent fully, but her infectious energy and enthusiasm gave the Trustees the faith to award a grant above the stated maximum of £2,000.
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The higher grant award ultimately gave Boshra the opportunity to fulfil her ambitions.
Eden and Boshra are two of the ambitious young people awarded prior limit-exceeding grants from the MRSF / Credit: We Love MCR Charity
These are just two examples of We Love MCR Charity’s recent successful applicants that demonstrate how vital the raising of the funding limit to £5,000 can be – but the fund’s success stories are never-ending.
As mentioned, We Love MCR Charity has already awarded over £70,000 to dozens of industrious young people throughout the city – but the charity says it is keen to reach £200,000 by March 2022 by finding even more rising stars who need a helping hand.
Did any of the above inspiring success stories remind you of someone who’s a perfect fit for the Manchester’s Rising Stars Fund?
Keen to apply yourself?
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People aged 16-24 can apply for funding to pay for what they need to take their next steps to success in work, qualifications or entrepreneurship, as the charity ultimately believes “circumstances should not determine futures”.
You can find more information, and stick an application in here.
Featured Image – WLMC
News
Record 37.5 million journeys home for Christmas expected before the big day
Emily Sergeant
Drivers are being told to prepare for long queues, as a record number of festive trips are predicted across the UK ahead of the big day.
With the festive season generally known to make the roads nationwide busier than usual, travel warnings have now been issued to all those making Christmas getaway trips for the holidays – with an annual study by the RAC and INRIX suggesting that 37.5 million journeys are planned before Christmas Day arrives.
With Christmas falling mid-week again this year, the figures are suggesting that drivers are keen to set off early to avoid what will be an undoubtedly frantic coming weekend on the roads.
Around 18% of getaway journeys are expected to be made today and tomorrow (Wednesday 17 and Thursday 18 December, respectively).
But, the RAC expects the main wave of festive journeys to start this Friday (19 December) with a whopping 3.6 million trips planned, before this escalates even further to 4.1 million on Saturday (20 December).
A record 37.5 million journeys home for Christmas are expected before the big day/ Credit: Highways Agency (via Unsplash)
The figures predict this will be the busiest Saturday of any Christmas getaway period since its records began in 2013.
Approximately 3.5m journeys are then expected on Sunday (21 December), while a further 5.3 million trips are set to take place at some point between 19 and 21 December, although drivers haven’t decided what day they’ll travel yet.
According to the RAC’s research, there will then be a slight lull in festive trips at the start of Christmas week – with Monday and Tuesday being normal working days for many people – however, volumes of traffic could be at their highest since COVID on Christmas Eve when 4.2 million getaways are expected, making it the single busiest day for getaways over the period.
When it comes to the best and worst times to travel over the festive period, the research has revealed that the times to avoid when travelling along major routes will be from 4:30pm onwards, with queues of more than half an hour expected in Manchester on the M60 clockwise from J7 Altrincham to J18 for the M62 for Leeds.
On the two busiest days over the getaway period – this coming Saturday (20 December) and Christmas Eve – the RAC and INRIX are advising drivers to expect lengthy delays on major roads between 11am and 7pm, as this is when most journeys will be made.
After the big day, drivers are expecting to make 4.6 million journeys on Boxing Day and 4.1 million on Saturday 27 December, as they travel home or continue their celebrations elsewhere.
NHS says it’s battling with ‘worst case scenario’ as flu cases surge nationwide
Emily Sergeant
Flu hospitalisations have surged by more than half in just one week, plunging the NHS into the ‘worst case scenario’.
Shocking new figures have revealed that an nn average of 2,660 patients per day were in a hospital bed with flu last week, which is the highest-ever for this time of year and up 55% up on last week – which, when put into perspective, means there are enough flu patients each day to fill more than three whole hospital trusts.
NHS bosses have warned that the total has already increased sharply since the week covered by the data, and at this time, there is thought to be no ‘peak’ in sight.
These new figures come as demand for A&Es and ambulance services are already soaring.
The number of patients in hospital with flu has risen by over 50% in the last week, reaching a record number for this time of year – and numbers continue to grow.
New monthly figures showed that A&E attendances were a record for November at 2.35 million and more than 30,000 higher than November 2024, while there were 48,814 more ambulance incidents compared to last year.
The record-breaking demand also comes just ahead of thousands of resident doctors going on strike this week from 17-22 December – with ‘major disruption’ expected for patients ahead of Christmas.
The public are advised to attend any planned appointments scheduled during the strikes, unless they have been contacted to reschedule.
Primary and urgent and emergency care services will continue to be available for those who need them, during the industrial action.
NHS says it’s battling with the ‘worst case scenario’ as flu cases surge nationwide / Credit: Pxhere
The public should use 111 online as their first port of call for urgent but not life-threatening issues so that they can be directed to the best place for their needs, while patients who need emergency medical care should continue to use 999 or come forward to A&E as normal.
“With record demand for A&E and ambulances and an impending resident doctors strike, this unprecedented wave of super flu is leaving the NHS facing a worst-case scenario for this time of year – with staff being pushed to the limit to keep providing the best possible care for patients,” commented Professor Meghana Pandit, who is the NHS National Medical Director.
“Even worse, it continues to rise and the peak is not in sight yet, so the NHS faces an extremely challenging few weeks ahead.
“We have prepared earlier for winter than ever before, and stress-tested services to ensure people have a range of ways to get the help they need and avoid needing to go to A&E.”
Emily Sergeant -
10th November 2021 
