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Here's the Mancunian Way for today:
Good afternoon
Over the last 12 months Manchester Evening News reporter Paige Oldfield has visited the towns, estates and suburbs of Greater Manchester speaking to people about the cost-of-living crisis. Initially many were reluctant to open up, but the more expensive life has become the more it seemed people were only too glad to talk about what they were going through.
During that time she's met a disabled woman who described being trapped upstairs because she couldn't afford to use her stair lift, consoled a sobbing mum forced to light her home with candles and heard from a man who hadn't eaten for three days.
With winter coming and no end to the crisis in sight, in today's Mancunian Way we'll hear from Paige about why she feels it's vital we tell these stories.
Chronicling the cost-of-living crisis
On October 27 last year then-Chancellor Rishi Sunak unveiled his second budget of 2021. It came shortly after the £20 Universal Credit uplift was scrapped, leaving 4.4 million households £1,000 a year worse off.
Later that week Paige Oldfield visited Eccles in Salford to see how people were coping with the cuts. She spoke with a woman worried about becoming homeless after being told by her landlord she had just four weeks to find somewhere else to live, a mum-of-four who couldn't afford to buy her kids birthday presents and a busker who said rising bills made the future a 'frightening' place.
It was the first in what would become a series of pieces documenting life in post-covid, post-Brexit Greater Manchester, telling the stories of those at the sharp end of the worst cost-of-living crisis in decades.
Here Paige discusses her work...
How did the series come about?
We started the series in October 2021 when Universal Credit cuts were made. The cost of living crisis was in its very early stages but people were beginning to talk. The cuts meant those on Universal Credit were struggling to keep up with rising costs.
Has it been difficult getting people to open up about such a sensitive topic?
Yes and no. At the beginning of the year, people were apprehensive and it took longer to convince people to speak out. Now, everyone wants to share their experience. Of course it's still difficult asking people to open up about extremely personal circumstances. But I think these people just want their voices heard. The cost of living crisis has impacted everyone in so many different ways.
How have people's stories changed over the year?
As the year has progressed, the cost of living crisis has worsened. That means people have found themselves struggling more than ever before. While at the start of the year people may have been worried about an imminent rise in bills, now they're living out the nightmare. The stories have become more harrowing as people struggle to survive.
Which story has had the biggest impact on you?
I would say every cost of living story I've done has stayed with me in some way. It's particularly difficult when the people become visibly emotional, which has happened on several occasions. The worst part is feeling so powerless. While I'm there as a journalist, I still care about the people I meet and it's awful knowing they are going through such hardship and there's nothing I can do to help them. When I met a man who hadn't eaten for three days, I had to go and buy him food from a nearby Tesco. I couldn't leave him that way.
Why do you think it's important that we tell these stories?
It's absolutely vital that we act as a voice for those unable to speak up. It isn't a coincidence that everyone I've spoken to has been struggling in some way or another. Everyone has their own story to tell and it's our job to give them the opportunity to do that.
Read more: We asked people on the streets how they're coping. It took five minutes before someone cried
'I feel like a burden': How the cost of living crisis is squeezing the worst off
Held back by 'economic inactivity'
Greater Manchester needs to tackle its health inequalities and accelerate the transition to net zero carbon if it is to achieve sustainable economic growth over the next decade.
That was the message from a new report out today led by a panel of eminent economists.It sets out how the uneven spread of poor health around the region continues to hold it back. In parts of Greater Manchester nearly a third of the working age population were inactive at the end of 2021, and ill health was a key factor in explaining this.
In the worst-affected areas like Oldham (where 32.1% of the working age population were neither employed nor looking for a job), Rochdale (30%) and Bolton (29.5%) the problem has got much worse since the start of the pandemic.
The report says: "Inactivity on this scale positions some Greater Manchester districts in the top 10 local areas in the UK for economic inactivity and suggests that pronounced social distress has followed the virus in hitting traditionally low-income areas."
There's more on this story in today's Northern Agenda. Sign up here.
'Ooooh it's Tuesday’
In Monday's Mancunian Way we heard how working from home meant 'Thursday was the new Friday'. But if you're a regular at the Chestergate in Stockport you'll know that the best nights out happen on a Tuesday.
The traditional boozer has gone viral on Facebook after posting a video showing locals having the time of their lives at the weekly karaoke session. Entitled 'Oooh it's Tuesday choose your own Tuesday', it shows punters having a laugh, including Dennis dancing and lifting up his red t-shirt to show his belly button and 84-year-old Molly chatting to a young man by the bar, before showing off her dance moves with a shimmy in her glam black fringed dress.
It's been watched more than a million times after pub manager Steph Armstrong, 34, posted it online a fortnight ago, with many hailing the Chestergate the 'best pub on earth'.
Read more: Stockport boozer goes viral with brilliant video of regulars living their best life
Historic pub to reopen
In more pub news it's been announced that The Deansgate in Manchester city centre is to reopen. The 19th boozer closed its doors in March 2020 as the first covid lockdown kicked in.
But now new owners Greene King have announced it's to reopen later this month after a refurb. Jonathon Evans, the pub’s general manager, said: “The Deansgate is well-known and well-loved by the people of Manchester and we are looking forward to opening its doors once more and welcoming customers old and new."
Read more: Historic Manchester pub that has been shuttered for years to reopen
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Weather etc
Thursday: Partly cloudy changing to sunny intervals by late morning. 15C.
Roadworks: Worsley Road, Swinton, closed between Halfords and the White Swan for water mains works until October 14.
Trivia question: Only three players have turned out for both Manchester United and Manchester City in the 21st Century. Can you name them?
Manchester headlines
- Bonfire night cancelled: Major public bonfire nights and firework displays organised by Manchester council at parks across the city have been scrapped for 2022 with bosses blaming 'escalating costs'. Read more
- Murder appeal: Detectives are appealing for witnesses after a 21-year-old dad was found dead at a house in Rochdale following 'three incidents'. More here
- Tribute: The family of a young man killed by a falling tree in Sale have paid a heartbreaking tribute to him.
Worth a read
Lee Grimsditch looks back at the case of the Manchester 'mole gang' who spent six months digging a 100ft tunnel under a Blockbuster Video car park in Fallowfield in an ultimately doomed attempt to steal cash from an ATM.
Read more: Manchester 'mole gang' dug 100ft tunnel under car park to raid Blockbuster Video cash machine
That's all for today
Thanks for joining me.If you have stories you would like us to look into, email damon.wilkinson@menmedia.co.uk.
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The answer to today's trivia question is: Andy Cole, Carlos Tevez and Owen Hargreaves. In total 14 players have played for both Manchester clubs in the post-war period
