The Oldham nurse who braved occupied Brussels to help wounded WWI soldiers
The story of Sarah Hallam - the nurse who volunteered to travel to Brussels and help wounded soldiers in WWI - will be told as part of an International Women's Day talk organised by Gallery Oldham.
An Oldham nurse who “stood up and challenged the norm” will have her courageous story told as part of an event celebrating International Women’s Day in 2021.
Gallery Oldham has arranged a free Zoom talk for Monday (March 8) afternoon – sharing the remarkable tale of local health worker Sarah Hallam.
In 1914, Oldham nurse Sarah volunteered to visit Brussels and provide aid to Belgian soldiers wounded during the First World War.
During her time in the city, German troops moved in and occupied the area.
Sarah remained in Brussels to help out for two months before being forced back to Britain – but she didn’t stay home for long.
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Before 1914 ended, the nurse volunteered for the French Flag Nursing Corps – providing essential medical aid in French military hospitals.
Sarah’s story is one of bravery, spirit and altruism; and it’s set to be recited in full next week.
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Tickets for the talk are available via EventBrite.
Sarah Hallam / Image: Gallery Oldham
Councillor Arooj Shah, Deputy Leader of Oldham Council and Cabinet Member for COVID-19 Response, said that women like Sarah Hallam “have led the way and helped shape the Oldham we know today.”
He added: “International Women’s Day is about celebrating the achievements of women and also raising the profile of the great work that is being done locally.
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“Across all our communities there are women doctors, council staff, teachers, social workers, volunteers – the list is huge – all of them doing excellent jobs, working to improve Oldham for our residents and for future generations.
“It’s really important to remember what women have achieved, but also how far there is still to go to achieve true equality.”
During the evening of International Women’s Day, Oldham Libraries will host a Q&A with award-winning writer Martina Evans as part of a celebration of women in literature.
This will event also be streamed online, with tickets up for grabs here.
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M&S launches new Too Good To Go partnership – with NINE Greater Manchester stores signed up
Emily Sergeant
M&S has finally decided to partner with food waste charity, Too Good To Go.
As of yesterday, a total of 350 M&S stores across the UK – including nine major sites in Greater Manchester – now offer new Too Good To Go ‘Surprise Bags’ that are made up of surplus bakery goodies, giving customers the chance to collect quality food at a reduced price at the end of the day directly from in-store bakeries.
The launch follows a trial in a select number of UK stores, and the Surprise Bags will include bakery treats such as pastries, cookies, and fresh bread.
The partnership with Too Good To Go is the latest move in M&S Food’s work to reduce surplus food and ensure good food doesn’t go to waste.
Greater Manchester stores that will be taking part in the new Too Good To Go partnership include Manchester Market Street, Trafford Centre, Stockport, Spinningfields, Prestwich, Wigan Robin, Bolton Middlebrook, Bury The Rock, and Ashton Moss.
Each of the Surprise Bags will include three to four bakery products to a minimum retail price of £10.20 for just £3.80.
Available Monday to Saturday, customers can order their Surprise Bags through the Too Good To Go app, and collect them one hour before their local store closes.
“It’s great to be involved in this new launch with Too Good To Go to help reduce food waste,” commented Chris Parker, who is the Store Manager at M&S Bolton Middlebrook.
“Our in-store bakeries are incredibly popular with customers, and at the end of the day, customers will now be able to order and collect surprise bags offering fantastic surplus bakery products at great value.
“By finding new ways to re-purpose surplus products, we’re helping ensure more food is enjoyed rather than wasted. This partnership is another positive step towards reaching our goal of halving food waste by 2030.”
Featured Image – Supplied
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Both Manchester United and Manchester City named as teams with the least amount of local fans
Emily Sergeant
Both Manchester United and Manchester City have been identified as being teams with the least amount of local fans, according to a new survey.
We all know that supporting a local team can be seen as a mark of credibility among a certain kind of football fan, while on the flip side of that, not following a local team is often associated with being a ‘glory hunter’. But which Premier League clubs have the highest – and lowest – proportion of supporters living close to home?
Well, YouGov decided to use its profiles data to analyse the fanbases of all 20 Premier League clubs for the 2026-27 season to get the answer to this once and for all.
And it’s fair to say that it’s not looking the best for the Manchester teams.
The study found that, overall, Brighton & Hove Albion is the Premier League’s most local team – with 56% of fans based in the South East.
Sunderland (50%) and Nottingham Forest (49%) supporters are the next-most likely to live in the same region as their teams, followed by Aston Villa, Brentford, Ipswich, Leeds, Fulham, Hull, and Crystal Palace fans rounding out the top 10.
At the other end of the table, Manchester United has the second-lowest proportion of local supporters, with only a quarter based in the North West (23%), with one in six (17%) actually living in London instead.
And then as for Manchester City – who are widely considered to be the most successful team of the modern era – it has ranked fourth-bottom for local fans, as a quarter of the club’s supporters are based in the North West, with a fifth based in London (19%).
But although both United and City have found themselves towards the bottom end of the ranking, they are not the worst offenders.
That title, unfortunately, does belong to another North West team though – Liverpool.
Liverpool is the club with the lowest proportion of ‘local’ supporters, as just a fifth are based in the North West (21%) with the next highest concentration of fans can being found in London.
The Manc -
2nd March 2021 
