Meantime's March newsletter

The Meantime newsletter’s back, and it’s better than ever! Click on the image to find out the improvements they’ve been making over the last few months, and how the company’s software keeps one of the world’s biggest airports running smoothly in a crisis.

Zen Office catalogue copy

Our design partner Make and Communicate needed help with snappy and informative copy for the inside cover of their client Zen Office’s new catalogue. We reviewed their current literature to make sure the messages were in line with their overall strategy and accurately portrayed Zen’s brand and image.

Justice Gap logo

I recently wrote a piece for Justice Gap on the effects the proposed legal aid bill will have on libel cases; see the full article here. If you have even a passing interest in the law stay and look around the rest of the excellent Justice Gap site and sign up for the newsletter updates, it’s a fantastic resource.

Katherine Bird is YPSF’s Wythenshawe service manager. She explains: “We’ve run a similar course in our city centre branch on Oldham Street for over two years now and it’s been a massive success,” she says. “But we found that it can be very difficult for young people in Wythenshawe to get into Manchester city centre on a regular basis, so we’ve been keen to offer a dedicated Wythenshawe course for some time.”

A successful bid to the Manchester Youth Fund secured enough funding to run R U Ready? in Wythenshawe for at least 18 months, which will allow more than 250 young people to complete the training course and increase their chances of obtaining and making a success of their own tenancies.

“R U Ready? is slightly different to the city centre-based course, in that we have two extra modules based around employment, education and training,” says Katherine. “Local training providers are coming to Signpost to show course participants the help they can offer and they can see what’s available to them. We’re really pleased to have them on board.”

Further topics covered in the course include budgeting, furnishing your home, using community services and healthy living. 19 year old Abi was offered her own home within weeks of completing the Manchester-based course, and says: ““The course really helped me. It covered all sorts of things I didn’t know about, like managing bills, not getting into debt and making sure you always follow the rules of the tenancy. Without the course I would have been a bit lost because I’d never lived on my own before and didn’t know what was involved.”

YPSF can also offer further help and support to people who’ve completed the course if required. R U Ready runs on regular basis at YPSF’s Signpost centre on Brownley Road in Wythenshawe. A course specifically targeted at parents, with childcare provided, is planned for later in the year.

For further information go to www.ypsf.co.uk, email info@ypsf.co.uk or call YPSF Signpost on 0161 436 5432.

The Young People’s Support Foundation (YPSF) on Oldham Street in Manchester has reinstated its hot breakfast drop-in.The free cooked breakfast service offered by YPSF, a registered charity supporting young people at risk of homelessness, had closed over the summer. But thanks to newly-formed links with Manchester University providing voluntary opportunities for students, YPSF has been able to reintroduce the service Monday to Friday from 10 am to 12 noon, where hot showers and laundry facilities are also available.

Kate Macdonald is YPSF’s chief executive. “The breakfast drop-in just one small element of our services, but it’s an incredibly important one,” she says. “As well as providing hot food and drinks, our trained support workers are available without an appointment to provide help and support to young people who are worried about homelessness and other related issues.

“The breakfast drop-in is often their first port of call for young people in need.  A lot of the young people we help don’t have access to phones or email, so turning up in person, getting a hot meal, and being able to speak to a qualified support worker provides a vital lifeline and can mean the difference between spending the night on the streets and getting the help they desperately need.”

YPSF’s breakfast drop-in does not currently receive any funding and its operation relies on donations. Despite the uncertainty over funding, Kate is keen to expand on the service and open at weekends, as well as offering the service from YPSF’s Wythenshawe base.

“To make it work we need donations, and we need volunteers to help deliver the service,” she says. “We’re acutely aware of the demands people are facing financially and on their time, but that’s precisely why our services are needed now more than ever.”

To find out how you can help call 0161 228 7654, email info@ypsf.co.uk or visit YPSF’s website at YPSF’s website at www.ypsf.co.uk.

About YPSF

Young People’s Support Foundation is headquartered on Oldham Street in Manchester and has drop-in centres on Oldham Street and at St Andrew’s Hall on Brownley Road in Wythenshawe.

Originally established over 30 years ago as the Manchester Youth Trust, YPSF works in partnership with organisations including Manchester City Council, Manchester Joint Health Unit and the Department for Education to deliver essential services to young people, helping them to find secure accommodation and giving them the skills they need to live independently.

YPSF is a registered charity, Charity Commission Number 1112504.  The Company Registration Number is 05546361 and the registered office is at 52 Oldham Street, Manchester M4 1LE

For further press information contact Juliet Shaw on 07837 360470 or email Juliet@julietshaw.co.uk

When Michael’s* relationship with his mother broke down a few weeks before his 18th birthday, he was taken into local authority care. But because he turned 18 after just four weeks in care, he had to leave his foster home and wasn’t entitled to any after-care services or support. Click here to read the YPSF case study.

Al Kent on the House of Disco website

Here’s an interview we did with Al Kent for the excellent House of Disco website.

Kate joins YPSF at what is a challenging time for the charitable sector, but despite a general reduction in charitable funding in the latest round of government spending cuts, she is keen to see the charity expand its offering both in terms of location and services.

“YPSF offers vital support to young people in Manchester, and we are keen for that support to be available to a wider network of people across the northwest,” she says.

“As well as problems young people face with homelessness, there are a whole host of wider issues that need to be addressed such as training and employment, sexual health and healthy living.  We worked with 2984 young people in 2009/10, and of those, 584 were actually homeless and we helped them off the streets and into their own housing.

“The young people we work with tell us our support makes a huge difference to the course of their lives, and that support takes many forms.  I intend to ensure that we not only continue to carry out this vital work, but that we expand our offering to include more services across a wider area.”

Kate has a strong history of leading services for young people, spending two years as head of youth offending with Stockport Metropolitan Borough Council, where she achieved a significant improvement of performance of the department.  Moving to Manchester City Council, Kate had the lead role in areas including youth offending, gun gang crime, safeguarding and reducing the use of custody.  Prior to her council management positions, Kate spent 15 years in the Probation Service, becoming district manager responsible for Stockport and Trafford.

With strong leadership skills and many years of public sector experience, YPSF trustees saw Kate as the ideal choice to move the charity forward in the current economic climate and ensure that its vital services remain accessible to those who need them.

Kate lives in Chorlton, Manchester, with her three teenage sons. She is a keen cyclist and member of Chorlton Runners. She is also a governor at The Manchester College.

For further information about YPSF go to www.ypsf.co.uk, or call 0161 228 7654.

About YPSF

Young People’s Support Foundation is headquartered on Oldham Street in Manchester and has drop-in centres on Oldham Street and at St Andrew’s Hall on Brownley Road in Wythenshawe.

Originally established over 30 years ago as the Manchester Youth Trust, YPSF works in partnership with organisations including Manchester City Council, Manchester Joint Health Unit and the Department for Education to deliver essential services to young people, helping them to find secure accommodation and giving them the skills they need to live independently.

YPSF is a registered charity, Charity Commission Number 1112504.  The Company Registration Number is 05546361 and the registered office is at 52 Oldham Street, Manchester M4 1LE

For further press information contact Juliet Shaw on 07837 360470 or email Juliet@julietshaw.co.uk

Meantime's July newsletter

Why beautiful isn’t always best when it comes to IT, and the first in a series of ‘A Day In The Life’ of the Meantime time. Click on the image for Meantime’s latest newsletter.