THE PRINCE OF WALES WILL VISIT MANCHESTER
Thursday 16th November 2023
The Prince of Wales will visit Moss Side in Manchester on Thursday 16th November to spotlight vital work being carried out in the area to support communities and improve outcomes for young people.
His Royal Highness’ first visit of the day will mark the announcement of a new initiative, spearheaded by The Royal Foundation and the Mayor of Greater Manchester, to elevate and expand ongoing work to tackle youth violence. The announcement forms the third in a series of Community Impact projects created by The Royal Foundation to bring about tangible impact in the communities visited by the Prince and Princess of Wales.
The Prince will then visit a local youth hub to hear more about the work they carry out to empower and support young people in Moss Side to be the best they can be. His Royal Highness will also spend time with those involved in a community foodbank which provides a lifeline to individuals and families in need, whilst also working to tackle health inequalities and enrich the lives of the local community.
Engagement 1:
The Prince of Wales’s first visit of the day will be to the Hideaway Youth Project, lead partner of the Manchester Peace Together Alliance, to learn more about the work of the Alliance to reduce violence amongst young people. His Royal Highness’ visit marks the launch of a new initiative, galvanised by the Royal Foundation and the Mayor of Greater Manchester, which will help to expand the work of the Alliance through the creation of new opportunities for those at risk of youth violence.
The Manchester Peace Together Alliance is a community-led programme working to pinpoint and address the underlying causes of youth violence, with support from the Greater Manchester Violence Reduction Unit. The organisation works closely with young people aged 10-25 in Hulme, Moss Sideand Rusholme who are vulnerable to youth violence; providing activities and targeted mentoring programmes to put them on the path to success.
His Royal Highness will hear from those affected by youth violence about the devastating impact the issue has on local communities, before speaking with youth workers and young people supported by the Hideaway and other Alliance partners.
The Prince will hear about the progress that has been made to date by the alliance, before joining a conversation with Alliance partners and representatives from the business community who have been convened by the Royal Foundation, the Mayor of Greater Manchester and Manchester City Council to create the alliance’s first dedicated youth employment, skills and training programme.
His Royal Highness will hear more about the long-term impact that the new programme will have on local young people through the provision of new opportunities, helping to build aspirations and support those at risk of violence to reach their true potential.
Engagement 2:
The Prince of Wales will then visit the Moss Side Millennium Powerhouse, a community hub with a mission to create brighter futures for young people in Manchester. His Royal Highness will also hear about the work of Keeping It Real 24/7, a foodbank and community lifeline. The charity was set up by Wendy Simms, a member of the local Rastafarian community who invited the Prince to visit Moss Side to meet the local community during a Garden Party at Buckingham Palace earlier this year.
The Moss Side Millennium Powerhouse is a multi-service youth hub which works with a wide range of local organisations, including The Hideaway Youth Project, to provide a weekly programme of inclusive activities and clubs to allow young people to lead healthy and fulfilling lives. The centre also provides mental health support and NHS services as well as careers advice and guidance, and programmes for those leaving the care system. The Prince will hear more about this vital work, before meeting young people taking part in a range of activities in the centre’s sports hall.
The Millennium Powerhouse works closely with Keeping It Real 24/7, a foodbank which was set up in 2019 by Wendy Simms to address the needs of the community and build a better and stronger Moss Side. Supported by a team of dedicated volunteers, Wendy works to provide food and hot meals for those in need, with a particular focus on being able to supply culturally important foods such as yams, breadfruit and sugar cane.
The scale of the charity’s efforts has grown in recent years and now includes the provision of training courses for people looking to get into work, including helping aspiring chefs to obtain food hygiene qualifications. During his visit, His Royal Highness will spend some time in the kitchen to help prepare some food.
The Prince will meet some of those involved in the Keeping It Real 24/7’s most recent initiative, operating in collaboration with the NHS, to tackle health inequalities by creating a team of volunteer health champions embedded within the community. His Royal Highness will then visit Jessie’s Wall, a poignant memorial to Jessie James, whose life was tragically cut short by gunfire in the park adjacent to the Moss Side Millennium Powerhouse in 2006.
Extensive work has been carried out in consultation with the local community over the past few years to restore the tribute, which was originally created by Jessie’s friends soon after his death. Shortly before departing Moss Side, the Prince will spend time meeting members of the public outside the community centre.
