A volunteer from Oldham who has given her time and skills to good causes for more than 60 years has received a prestigious award.
Barbara Heywood has been given a Platinum Champions award by the Royal Voluntary Service (RVS) for her volunteering excellence after she started lending a hand at homeless charity Emmaus back in 2011, and has been offering her services each week within the charity’s social enterprise and community since then.
Barbara has mostly given her time to Emmaus Mossley in Ashton-under-Lyne.
Emmaus Mossley is just one local branch of the charity across Greater Manchester, and it supports 26 formerly-homeless people by providing them with a home, work, companionship, and individual support.
Barbara was awarded her RVS Platinum Champions award as par of an official Jubilee project to celebrate outstanding volunteers across the country who are making a difference every day.
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Congratulations to our very own Barbara who, after more than 60 years of volunteering, recently received a @RoyalVolService Platinum Champions Award.
Thousands of people from all over the UK who volunteer for a range of causes were nominated for the RVS Platinum Champions award, and from these nominations, 490 volunteers were hand-picked by a judging panel presided over by The Duchess of Cornwall – one of which was Barbara.
“This award was a lovely surprise and really, I receive it on behalf of all the dedicated volunteers who see a job and get it done,” Barbara said.
Barbara has volunteered her time at Emmaus Mossley in Ashton-under-Lyne since 2011 / Credit: Emmaus Mossley
“I don’t think I’m exceptional and know a lot of other people who do amazing work for good causes. I get as much from volunteering at Emmaus than I give, if not more.
“It’s my happy place.”
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Before helping out at Emmaus Mossley, Barbara started volunteering in her teens and has supported various organisations over the past 60 years – including as a guide commissioner with the Girl Guides, a Duke of Edinburgh Award officer for North West England, and at Oldham LEA.
Alongside volunteering at Emmaus Mossley, Barbara also currently volunteers at Oldham Baptist Church as a church deacon.
Channel 4 is looking for Mancs who think they can survive the apocalypse for a new TV series
Lydia Mastrolonardo
Have you always wanted to see how long you’d last in an apocalypse?
Well now’s your chance, as Apocalypse is potentially coming back to Channel 4 for a second series, with producers having put out a nationwide casting call for contestants willing to take part.
The casting call simply reads: “Do you think you have what it takes to survive the end of the world?”
Described as a dystopian series designed to test the creativity, resourcefulness, and resilience of our nation, Apocalypse sees players are pushed out of their comfort zones and put to the ultimate test.
In the series, ordinary people are tasked with surviving for 28 days in an abandoned city – used previously only for the military to practice urban warfare – with no food, running water, electricity or heat.
Produced by The Garden – which is part of ITV Studios – for Channel 4, the show’s creators are now calling on Mancs and people up and down the country with the ‘courage and ingenuity’ to compete, to get in touch and apply for the potential second series.
Does your mate always bang on after watching a post-apocalyptic film that they would’ve done things differently? Or is the news at the moment freaking you out and you want to give the end of the world a bit of a practice run? Either way, sign up, test that plan you’ve built in your head, and see if you’ve really got what it takes.
Applications are now open, and all you need to do is fill in a short application form and one of the production team will get back to you if they would like to proceed. Come on, let’s prove what Mancs are made of.
Hundreds of katsu curries are being given out for FREE in Manchester this week
Emily Sergeant
Hundreds of katsu curries are being dished up and given out for free in Manchester this week, but only for certain people.
And those lucky people will be students.
That’s right… a new semester is upon us, and thousands of freshers and returning students are descending on the city and Manchester‘s many universities for another year. But the life of a student isn’t exactly the cheapest sometimes, especially for those who haven’t had to live on a budget before moving out or into halls.
But to make things a little easier, Tampopo has announced it’ll be serving hundreds of one of its most popular dishes for free this week.
Tampopo is celebrating National Katsu Curry Day in the most delicious way possible, by giving away 700 Katsu Curries with rice for free, exclusively to freshers and students this Sunday (27 September).
Whether you’re brand new to the city, settling back into uni life, or you’re simply in need of a katsu fix, students can head to their nearest participating Tampopo and tuck into a hearty meal without needing to spend a penny.
100 katsu curries will be available each from 12-2pm at both Tampopo restaurants in Manchester city centre – which are on Albert Square, and in the Corn Exchange – or if you head over to the Trafford Centre, both the Tampopo there and the East Street sites are taking part.
“[Our] Katsu Curry has long been one of our most-loved dishes, so National Katsu Curry Day felt like the perfect excuse to give students a proper welcome to the new academic year,” Tampopo said in a statement.
So, are you feeling hungry then? The offer is exclusively available for takeaway only to freshers and students with a valid student ID, which they must present on collection.
100 portions are available at each participating location, and just one free katsu curry with rice will be available per person.
Emily Sergeant -
1st July 2022 
