What a night! Greater Manchester Mayor's Charity's first annual dinner

Over £15,000 raised in the successful launch of GMMMC's annual charity dinner

Businesses from across Greater Manchester did their bit to help end rough sleeping and homelessness, raising over £15,000 for the charity.

Hundreds of people from businesses spanning the city region’s private sector descended on the city’s New Century venue for the first ever charity dinner hosted by the Greater Manchester Mayor’s Charity.

The ‘An Evening With…’ event, hosted by Matty White, saw Mayor Andy Burnham take to the stage for a Q&A, with guests enjoying food from New Century’s indie vendors, DJs and a charity raffle boosting fundraising efforts. There was a poignant moment when Invisible Manchester performed a poem by Danny, a well-known character in the city known for his heartfelt poetry, who sadly passed away in 2022. Part of Invisible Cities, the social enterprise trains people who have experienced homelessness to become walking tour guides of their own city.

Patron of the charity, Mayor of Greater Manchester Andy Burnham said:

“It was really inspiring to see so many of our business community come together on the night in support of the Greater Manchester Mayor’s Charity. The energy in the room was clear to see, and we have raised some valuable funds that will help tackle homelessness and rough sleeping, while also raising awareness of the incredible work of the charity and what the money they raise does in our city region.

What we’re doing in the city-region is working. The charity is playing a big role in reducing rough sleeping, but we need the public to continue to support us so that we can help more people and not let this cost of living crisis lead to another rise in rough sleeping.”

The fundraiser is the latest in a series of events and interventions by the Greater Manchester Mayor’s Charity, that have so far helped raise over £60,000. All proceeds from the evening will go to A Bed Every Night - the flagship scheme which aims to provide a bed (and wraparound support) for anyone rough sleeping, or at risk of rough sleeping, in Greater Manchester, and work to stop homelessness before it becomes a reality.

Tim Heatley, Chair of Greater Manchester Mayor’s Charity said:

“No one person or organisation can single-handedly solve the complex challenge of homelessness in our city region – it takes proper collaboration and a wave of support. We’ve witnessed that over and over, with people giving what they can to support a good cause. We were blown away by the passion and determination from Greater Manchester’s businesses who showed up to New Century and gave A Bed Every Night another welcome boost to ensure support for those at risk of rough sleeping continues.”

Greater Manchester Mayor’s Charity are grateful to their sponsors for support in delivering the event, including Artorious, Jen Harrison Construction and Deloitte, and for partners Elevate, Invisible Manchester, Gooey, GigPig and Spaces & Stories.

Launched in 2018 by Andy Burnham and supported by the Charity, A Bed Every Night provides emergency accommodation for anyone rough sleeping across the city-region, regardless of status, as well as vital personal support.

Since its launch, A Bed Every Night has helped over 4,000 people and been instrumental in reducing rough sleeping in the region since its peak in 2017. Investment into this unrivalled scheme of emergency provision prevented a major rise in the numbers of people rough sleeping for Greater Manchester compared to what was seen nationally.

In January 2023, on an average there were 582 people in A Bed Every Night accommodation across Greater Manchester who would otherwise be at risk of rough sleeping, with 21 organisations across the region providing accommodation.

Donate today and know that your money will help tackle homelessness across our city-region for a fairer and more sustainable future.