Stops on our Employers This year we have continued to opportunities and help many strengthen our relationships with candidates achieve their goals and 2018/2019 a number of employers across aspirations. We have supported the journey north Manchester, whilst making new North Manchester Business We had a lot to celebrate last year! We threw ‘Our new connections with many more. Network, a group of like-minded Blooming Great Big Bash’ to not only mark our These relationships have allowed employers who want to bring extra yes clients to access a range value to their local community. To help address the digital skills gap fifth anniversary, but also the third birthday of of fantastic local employment Annual report and locally, we started our ‘One Digital’ our Blackley branch at The Hive and the launch of social accounts programme with funding from Clarion our newest base in Collyhurst! Futures and support from Northwards Partners 2018-2019 Housing. This meant we could recruit a Digital Champions Co-ordinator, We would like to say a huge thanks It would be impossible to provide Marika Ellul, who’s assembled a large to all of our partners for their this level of service without the ‘Be Well’, the social prescribing team of volunteer digital champions. continued support in providing help of everyone involved and we service we help facilitate, completed The champs share their skills in sessions their services and expertise to look forward to continuing to work its first full year of operation. It’s across north Manchester, helping our clients. closely together in the future. a partnership between ourselves, people with everything from specific the Greater Manchester Mental queries to getting online for the Health NHS Foundation Trust, first time. north Manchester GPs, Pathways Community Interest Company and Who we are Northwards Housing. Through ‘Be Funders Contact us Well’, yes helps people referred by their GPs to get back into We are grateful for the continued yes @ Newton Heath and how support from our funders: 115 Briscoe Lane, M40 2TP employment. (Monday to Friday, 9.30am - 4.00pm) Core funding Tel: 0161 720 4090 we help • Northwards Housing • Manchester City Council yes @ Higher Blackley “It’s been five years since we • Re:Vision North The Hive, Co-operative Academy, began our journey and I’m Working with Prosper Associates and Northwards Plant Hill Road, M9 6NP We welcomed three work placements from so proud of how far yes has Housing, we were able to offer a training course Direct project funding (Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, France! Jean, Jordan and Koffi each joined us for come. Since opening the and funding to people looking to set up their own • Collyhurst Big Local 9.30am - 4.00pm) three months through the Erasmus Programme. doors to our Newton Heath businesses. The 12-week course gave participants • Clarion Futures Tel: 0161 974 0932 They were a big hit with the clients at our Newton office in 2013, we’ve helped the skills and knowledge to take their ideas from the • Places for People Heath branch and we look forward to welcoming hundreds of people across drawing board to the high street. It was a great success, • Clothworkers Foundation yes @ Collyhurst more visitors to experience our work in future. north Manchester to find with 11 participants successfully completing the • Jigsaw Homes 35-39 Southchurch Parade, M40 7GE work and this year has seen course. Five of the businesses are now up and running • Mears (Monday to Friday, 9.30am - 4.00pm) us take even greater strides and we plan to hold further courses across north Tel: 0161 720 4990 towards supporting local Manchester in future. entrepreneurs. We were delighted to be shortlisted for the 2018 National Tenant Participation Advisory Service awards alongside Northwards “Partnering with Prosper Associates “Supporting people to get where Housing. We were nominated for “Excellence Visit our website and Northwards Housing, we’ve they want to go in their lives is in Employment Skills & Training”. www.yesmanchester.co.uk been able to offer a start-up our bread and butter, but this Email us business training course as well as year we were honoured to be able [email protected] grants to help people turn their to literally help local people put ideas into reality. It’s been a joy to affordable food on their plates. Like us on Facebook watch these businesses take the We started hosting a food pantry www.facebook.com/yesmcr first steps on their own journeys at our Collyhurst base, run by and we’re excited to watch them Wellspring Community Church, Follow us on Twitter grow. which has been hugely beneficial @yesMCR The Cube arrived in Collyhurst! We supply candidates for many of our clients. to this specialist training facility, working in partnership “We’ve gone in some exciting with the Construction Industry Training Board, Re:Vision new directions ourselves in the “It’s been an exciting 12 months for (who help fund and provide training for employability The ‘Well of Hope’ food pantry opened at our Collyhurst last year, too. We launched our us and I can’t wait to see where the activities) and the Department for Education. It enables centre last summer. Run by Wellspring Community Church, Collyhurst branch and, just behind next year takes us. I hope you’ll join us to give people access to, and the skills to apply for, this charity initiative helps support people on low incomes it, we are working with The Cube to us for the ride.” A huge thank you to Constructing Growth for their sponsorship which exclusive construction jobs and opportunities. or claiming benefits. Working with FareShare and local help more people to get into the has funded the publication of this annual report supermarkets, they provide customers with a £30 weekly food construction industry. Diane Roberts, Chief Executive shop for just £4. Stuart Nuttall, 30, from Kathy Morrison, 37, of Why it pays to Blackley, launched his Blackley, launched her social business ‘Exotic Getaways’ enterprise ‘Morrisso Health’ after We’ve helped a lot of people get to after completing our business completing our course, too. Her say ‘yes’ where they want to go... training course. He looks after company uses its profits to fund people’s pets when they go on health and wellbeing activities holiday, especially exotic ones in north Manchester. Richard Jaworski, 45, from Veronica Hill, 57, from Newton like reptiles. Crumpsall, came to yes after being Heath, found work as a cleaner It was so nice to go into made redundant. We helped him through yes after her hours Before I started the business, somewhere and not have to go to get training, update his CV and were reduced at her old job. I worked in a pet shop, on ‘yeah, I want to work for myself, successfully apply for a job as a peanuts basically. I learnt a lot here’s my ready-made business warehouse operative. yes helped me a lot. They’ve through the shop dealing with plan for you’ because I didn’t always got time for you. different kinds of exotic animals have the skills or the confidence I went to the job centre and they They’re always willing to help and thought ‘this is something I really to do that. yes helped to referred me to yes to get help with you with absolutely anything: could pursue myself and I could build my confidence so that I using computers, but I discovered money problems, housing, live on it if I did it right’. was able to get all those ideas it offers a lot more than just that. bettering yourself, trying to get onto paper and, by the end of They’re brilliant at making people you interviews, socialising… it, I had a business plan and more confident again. everything! £1,000 funding. Princess Sessay, 45, from Higher Mother-of-five Althea Blackley, came to the UK from Barnett, 50, of Collyhurst, also Norway and visited yes when our completed our business course. Collyhurst office opened. At first, She’s since opened her shop we helped her get a full-time job ‘Upcycle Collyhurst’, selling Our new home as a health care assistant (HCA) in revamped goods and teaching a nursing home, but she’d always people how to refurbish their dreamed of working in a hospital. own possessions. in Collyhurst With our support, she’s now due to start as a HCA at Manchester Royal I started from home and my Infirmary. friends would come in and say I should do it professionally. I just I can really recommend yes, thought I’d like to do something especially to people who have just working for myself and at my Following on from the We’re really pleased with what employment for 10 clients during come to England and don’t know own pace, my own hours. success of our branches in we’ve managed to achieve here this period, as we know it can be where to start. If they come to yes, I in our first 10 months. We had a time intensive. We’re thrilled to think there will be great changes in yes has helped me in so many Newton Heath and Higher footfall of 5,178 customers coming have been able to exceed this aim their life. ways: advice, use of their Blackley, we opened our through the doors – more than too, getting 21 local people into facilities, computers and such. third base in Collyhurst double what we were aiming for! work during that time. The people are astounding. on 21 May 2018.