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The Mancunian Way: An important legacy
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Here’s the Mancunian Way for today:
Hello,
I hope you all had an enjoyable weekend and managed to avoid the downpours as best you could. Sunday morning’s early hours storm was certainly a dramatic display – and there are some impressive images here.
The weather caused roads to flood and delays to transport and one elderly lady was left stranded in her house, so please take care of yourselves and your neighbours as the heavy rain is set to continue.
On to the news. In today’s newsletter we’ll be looking at the mayor’s education plans, a dispute over the Census and Erling Haaland’s late-night ice cream treat. But first, we’re going to look at a tragic story of one woman’s battle with the complex benefits and housing systems.
A life in poverty, a death in poverty
Karen McBride was a kind, compassionate person who instilled ‘honourable traits’ in her children and campaigned hard for policy changes that would help those in poverty.
She gave ‘inspiring’ speeches based on her own experiences of the system. But ultimately, she died ‘frustrated to the point of desperation’ after years of struggle and fear over money and ‘uninhabitable’ living conditions.
A coroner says her story highlights the ‘complexities of navigating the benefits system’. And though he did not find that ‘the state’ should have been aware of a risk to her life, her family say the agencies dealing with her benefits and housing ‘have a lot to answer for’ after pursuing her for ‘erroneous debt’.
The mum-of-four, 46, was found hanged in her kitchen on August 1 last year. Her daughter Codie has now spoken out about her death and the events that led up to it at an inquest attended by reporter Paul Britton.
In an eloquent letter read out during the hearing, she said the ‘failings of multiple agencies’ had led to her mother’s death and hit out at ‘systemic and policy-based failings’.
Stockport Coroners’ Court heard the family was ‘wrongly pursued’ over benefits debt. Codie said that her mother was moved into a property on Rydal Walk, in Stalybridge, with two of her children that was ‘in a very poor state with a myriad of serious restoration work needing to be done’. She was told by Jigsaw Homes that she would be making herself and her children intentionally homeless if she refused the property – a move Codie says made her mother ‘feel intimidated and like she had no other choice’.
The inquest heard there was a delay to her moving in because of promised renovation work but when she finally did, in December 2019, there was no gas or electricity. Codie told the inquest there was black mould, pigeons nesting in the loft, a live wire hanging from the ceiling, damp, a hole in the floor, a leaking roof, leaking boiler and a bird trapped in the chimney.
The inquest heard from Codie about ‘erroneous debt’ and an ‘issue with housing benefit right from the beginning’ with a letter about rent arrears arriving before the family even moved in. These demands ‘terrified’ her mum but the matter was eventually resolved despite her being ‘passed back and fourth’. Tameside Council also chased Ms McBride for underpayment of council tax and she was forced to start making repayments despite it later being agreed that no money was actually owed.
The inquest heard Ms McBride’s GP was making referrals to mental health services for her but she was frustrated that she wasn’t getting the support she needed. Dr Paresh Parikh, from the Grosvenor Medical Centre in Stalybridge, told the inquest there have been ‘difficulties in accessing specialist mental health care in Tameside over the last 15 years’.
In March 2022, Ms McBride received a letter from Tameside Council telling her that her housing benefit had been suspended, then one from Jigsaw Homes saying she was in rent arrears – which was again an error.
Codie said: “Given the previous history, she was desperately overwhelmed. She was spiralling into a dark place and whenever she rang to find out what was happening and asked about the letters she had received she would be told they were just automated and she should just ignore them. For mum, this was much easier said than done.”
The inquest heard that in the weeks before her death, on August 1 last year, she was ‘solemn and helpless’ and still ‘not certain’ what the situation was. “She said things were never going to change and no one would listen to her,” Codie told the inquest in her statement.
Representatives for Jigsaw Homes, Tameside Council and the Department of Work and Pensions also gave evidence and you can read their statements here.
Coroner Chris Morris recorded a narrative conclusion and found Ms McBride didn’t have a ‘sustained intention’ to take her own life, describing her death as an ‘impulsive act whilst under the influence of alcohol’. He described her as ‘the most remarkable person who leaves an important legacy’.
You can read the full report from the inquest here.
Mayor defends his education plans
Andy Burnham has defended his education plans for Greater Manchester after they were branded as ‘unequal’ and ‘narrow’.
The mayor wants to create a ‘clear path’ at school for young people who do not go to university and has proposed using a new devolution deal to make it happen. He wants to roll out the Manchester Baccalaureate (MBacc) by September 2024.
But last week, the government described the proposal – which already has the backing of some education bosses and business leaders – as ‘unequal’. The Mayor defended his proposal in the House of Lords on Thursday claiming the criticism is ‘misplaced’.
He said: “I don’t think they’re understanding what we’re saying. We are actually talking about making the policies the government is trying to achieve work in a regional context.”
Read the full story by Joseph Timan here.
‘Significant undercount’
At least 33,000 people in Manchester were not counted in the latest census, the council has claimed. According to the 2021 census, the city’s population stood at 551,944 when the national data gathering exercise last took place.
However, Manchester council’s own calculations come to 588,277. The town hall is now concerned that this ‘significant undercount’ could affect funding, as Joseph Timan reports.
The government says population data is just one factor which influences how much money councils get. But the local authority is using its own forecasting to fill in the gaps identified in the census which is carried out every 10 years.
The council suspects that the census missed build apartment blocks, hidden houses in multiple occupation (HMOs) and some student accommodation. The town hall has also said that some households may have been missed because the 2021 census was ‘mostly digital’ – although paper copies were available.
You can read more about it here.
New addition for chocolate town
A new chocolate shop is set to open at the site of Ramsbottom’s famous Chocolate Café. The famous venue closed in April after 15 years in operation with owner Philip Hargreaves explaining that trading had become ‘unsustainable’.
Now, Cocoa Tree will sell handmade artisan chocolates at the site when it opens in July. The family-run chocolatier already operates a café shop in Chorlton and owners Victoria and Christopher Walker say they sell everything from specialty hot chocolates to chocolate buttons and bars.
“We were devastated to hear the Chocolate Café closed,” Victoria told reporter Adam Maidment. “We love the idea that Ramsbottom is all about chocolate and we wanted to continue that. It’s a 15 year heritage that we’re taking on but we want to do our spin on artisan chocolate.”
An (ice) cream come true
After serving more than 300 ice creams to hungry City fans, Ejaz Azam was planning on shutting up his ice cream van and getting a good night’s sleep. But striker Erling Haaland had other ideas.
The footballer – clad in gold Dolce & Gabbana pyjamas – knocked on the window and jumped on board to make himself a ‘blue slush’ and ice cream following City’s open-top bus parade through the city centre last week.
Ejaz – who had just finished a 14-hour shift at Depot Mayfield – said he was shocked and delighted.
“It was dark outside so I wasn’t able to see,” he told reporter Tom George. “I was not in the mood to serve anybody so told the person I was closed and he said ‘are you going to say no to Haaland?’ He said ‘if you’re closed, it’s no problem’. When I realised it was Haaland, I thought I can’t say no.”
Ejaz popped the machines on in his Mr Whippy Ice Cream van and Haaland started selling slush to customers outside. “He was marvellous. A really nice person and really polite.”
I wonder if he’ll offer him a new cone-tract?
Could this landmark be demolished?
The landmark Owens Park Tower could be demolished under new plans for Manchester University’s Fallowfield campus. University bosses have unveiled proposals to replace existing accommodation with what they describe as 3,300 ‘new bedspaces’ on the site covering Owens Park, Oak House and Woolton Hall, as Damon Wilkinson reports.
Exact details of what is being proposed have not been released, but the university says the plans will result in an extra 950 bedrooms on the campus and see the tower demolished. It closed in 2014 and despite being earmarked for demolition the following year has stood empty ever since.
The redevelopment will be ‘delivered in multiple phases’ the university say and will not affect students currently living in halls at the campus. An outline planning application is expected to be submitted soon, while a public consultation runs until June 30.
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Weather etc
Tuesday: Heavy rain changing to cloudy in the afternoon. 21C.
Road closures: M67 eastbound entry slip road closed due to long-term roadworks at J2 A57 Hyde Road (Denton). Until December 1, 2025.
Trivia question: Which actor, who is part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, studied at Manchester University?
Manchester headlines
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Revamp: Nine tennis venues across Manchester are due for a revamp as the Lawn Tennis Association pledges £483,095. It’s part of a national initiative to renovate public courts, funded by the UK Government and the LTA Tennis Foundation and carried out by the LTA. The renovated courts are expected to introduce improved court accessibility with new gate-access technology and booking systems.
- Busiest: Manchester Airport experienced its busiest day since before the coronavirus pandemic this month – as thousands of Manchester City fans jetted off to Istanbul. More than 100,000 passengers passed through the south Manchester airport on Friday June 9. It was the highest number of travellers seen since September 2019. More here.
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Listed building: Controversial alterations to a restaurant in a posh conservation area, which almost made a councillor fall off his bike in awe, have been given a retrospective green light by planners following a tide of local support. The unauthorised glazed dining area with an imposing steel framework resulted in 67 letters to planners in support of the Cibo Italian restaurant in Hale village. Trafford’s planning and development management committee was advised by officers to refuse the application for the building in the Grade II listed Hale Station Buildings, which owners said may result in its closure. But councillors reacted positively following a plea to the committee by nearby resident Joe Shammah on behalf of other villagers. More here.
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March: A Just Stop Oil protest snaked through Manchester city centre with roads coming to a standstill over the weekend. Orange-clad protestors marched through the streets with police in attendance. The protest started near to the AO Arena, before moving along Trinity Way and heading towards the Manchester Cathedral and the Arndale. Just Stop Oil members are demanding that the government stops licensing and consents for all new UK fossil fuel projects.
Worth a read
Banned items like drugs and mobile phones are often smuggled into prisons. And the inquest into the death of an inmate at Forest Bank, in Salford, has shed some light on some of the bizarre ways contraband is brought in.
As Damon Wilkinson reports, the hearing was told that some offenders were choosing to get locked up so they could get drugs inside – using the time as free men to collect drugs, before breaching parole in a bid to get sent to jail with the supplies.
Marie Durning, head of security and operations at Forest Bank, told the inquest in Bolton criminals ‘will try every way imaginable to get illicit substances in’. Inmates use associates, friends and family members to smuggle drugs and mobiles by lobbing them over the perimeter walls or fences, which are then picked up during exercise. Drones are also being used to fly packages direct to cell windows, Ms Durning said.
You can read more about that here.
That’s all for today
Thanks for joining me. If you have stories you would like us to look into, email [email protected].
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The answer to today’s trivia question is: Benedict Cumberbatch.
