FC United partners with Caritas
Two years ago FC United of Manchester broke new ground by setting up a Good Neighbours project whereby volunteers recruited by the club visit older, socially isolated people living in Miles Platting and Newton Heath in North Manchester.
To our knowledge, this is the only example of a football club in this country meeting the needs of older people in this way.
This project was established with financial support from Manchester City Council and ADACTUS Housing Trust. Following cuts in local authority spending, this funding was not renewed this year. However, many of our volunteers developed significant relationships with their older clients and carried on visiting them on a regular basis.
The club is now very pleased to announce a partnership with Caritas Diocese of Salford which will help us to continue to support the valuable work our volunteers do. Caritas is the official charity of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Salford and works with people of all faiths across Manchester and Lancashire. They have a long track record of delivering social services in North Manchester and their network of staff and volunteers reach a large number of older people living on their own in the area.
In our discussions with Caritas, we have found significant agreement between our values and theirs and are optimistic that both organisations can work well together for the benefit of the community in North Manchester.
FC United’s initial contribution to the partnership will focus on the recruitment of volunteer and IT and administrative support. Caritas will initially contribute project costs and the mentoring of new volunteers. However, as the partnership develops we hope to be successful in joint applications for funding that will allow our joint work to thrive.
If you or anybody you know would like to volunteer on this project and get involved in this very rewarding aspect of the club’s work, please contact the project coordinator; Michael Holdsworth on 0161 273 8950 or via michaelholdsworth@fc-utd.co.uk
To find out more about Caritas, click here
To our knowledge, this is the only example of a football club in this country meeting the needs of older people in this way.
This project was established with financial support from Manchester City Council and ADACTUS Housing Trust. Following cuts in local authority spending, this funding was not renewed this year. However, many of our volunteers developed significant relationships with their older clients and carried on visiting them on a regular basis.
The club is now very pleased to announce a partnership with Caritas Diocese of Salford which will help us to continue to support the valuable work our volunteers do. Caritas is the official charity of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Salford and works with people of all faiths across Manchester and Lancashire. They have a long track record of delivering social services in North Manchester and their network of staff and volunteers reach a large number of older people living on their own in the area.
In our discussions with Caritas, we have found significant agreement between our values and theirs and are optimistic that both organisations can work well together for the benefit of the community in North Manchester.
FC United’s initial contribution to the partnership will focus on the recruitment of volunteer and IT and administrative support. Caritas will initially contribute project costs and the mentoring of new volunteers. However, as the partnership develops we hope to be successful in joint applications for funding that will allow our joint work to thrive.
If you or anybody you know would like to volunteer on this project and get involved in this very rewarding aspect of the club’s work, please contact the project coordinator; Michael Holdsworth on 0161 273 8950 or via michaelholdsworth@fc-utd.co.uk
To find out more about Caritas, click here
First Posted ~ 09:31 Fri 14 Dec 2012
News ID ~ 4619
Last Updated ~ 01:52 Tue 16 Feb 2021