Guest article from the Carbon Co-op. A Greater Manchester based community benefit organisation combating climate change by utilising innovative methods to make homes more energy efficient: The Carbon Co-op announced their withdrawal from the 2018 Manchester Science Festival after the Museum of Science and Industry (MSI) announced that part of the festival would be sponsored […]
Accountability for the Mayor of Greater Manchester: participatory governance in the 21st century
Guest article from Steady State Manchester: It has been over a year since Greater Manchester elected its first Mayor. Since then, Mayor Andy Burnham has worked to build the Mayor’s office as an institution almost from scratch and within the confines of the devolution agreement with central government. This is no small feat, and the Mayor’s […]
No social rent housing built in Salford and just 15 Section 106 houses gained
Guest article from The Salford Star: Latest figures published by the Government for 2016/17 show that no social rent housing was built in Salford, while just 15 houses were gained through Section 106 agreements – all of which were either for the more expensive ‘affordable’ rent or shared ownership. This is just more proof of […]
Wythenshawe MP backs Manchester lawyer calling for end to legal aid cuts after being paid £255 for seven months work
Guest Article from The Wythenshawe Reporter: Catriona McLauglin, a solicitor advocate, based in Manchester says criminal lawyers are leaving the profession because of the cuts, denying access to justice to some of the most vulnerable people accused of crimes. And the independent body which represents solicitors, the Law Society, who are mounting a legal challenge to […]
In Salford 79% of Universal Credit tenants are in rent arrears
Guest article from the Salford Star: Figures released in a new report to be seen by Salford councillors next week show that 79% of housing tenants claiming Universal Credit are in arrears averaging £689. This compares with 33.6% of tenants not claiming Universal Credit in arrears with average balance of £414. Campaigners have labelled the […]
Male sex work uncovered – the pain behind the game
Guest article from Street Support Greater Manchester: ***CONTENT WARNING:This article contains details of sexual abuse that some may find distressing.*** When we think of the stereotypical “sex worker”, we are more than likely to think of the eastern European woman who has been trafficked into a western European country and is working in a brothel […]
The Mayor’s Green Summit: a balance sheet
Guest article from Steady State Manchester: I attended the Greater Manchester Mayor’s Green City Summit on 21 March: here is a quick review. The event was, as you’d expect, a mixed bag, with good and bad aspects. It is too soon to make an assessment but here, from a Viable Economy perspective, are the important […]
Salford Council reveals staggering levels of homelessness
Guest article from The Salford Star: As the Homelessness Reduction Act kicks in this month, Salford City Council is about to publish its new 44-page Homeless Strategy which reveals shocking and staggering levels of homelessness in the city. Included in the report is the fact that Salford has a higher level of rough sleeping than […]
Following in Sylvia Pankhurst’s footsteps – meet Charlotte, Josephine, Eden & Lauren
Guest article from the Lipstick Socialist: Sylvia Pankhurst’s response to the 1918 Representation of the People Act reflected her politics. She had opposed the First World War from the start and spent the war years defending the rights of poor women and children in the East End of London who had become economic victims of […]
Damning report reveals over a third of Wythenshawe’s children are living in poverty
Guest Article from The Wythenshawe Reporter: Figures revealed by the End Child Poverty coalition, on the 24 January, show that in the five local authority wards in Wythenshawe around 34 per cent of youngsters are in poverty after housing costs are taken into account. The campaign blames the shockingly high levels of poverty in the […]