Adactus Housing Group Ltd
Adactus 'Growing Healthy Lives' wins 50,000 pounds from the People's Millions.
The Harpurhey district of North Manchester has won funding for a community allotment after a TV competition and public vote. The victory brings £50,000 to a project that will turn an overgrown, derelict and unloved piece of land in Harpurhey into a community allotment.
Harpurhey residents will work with Adactus Housing and charity Groundwork Trust to promote grow healthiery lives in their community.
Adactus’s ‘Growing Healthy Lives’ project was shown on ITV Granada’s ‘The People’s Millions’ on 24 November. The short film was a coordinated effort between Adactus staff, staff from Groundwork Trust and The Holy Trinity Primary School along with schoolchildren and local residents. The project won the public vote and a film crew from ITV Granada surprised staff from Adactus and local residents by turning up at the association’s North Manchester Regional Office on 25 November to film the presentation of the winning cheque.
Everyone involved is now eager to kick off this much needed project in Harpurhey. Adactus ‘Growing Healthy Lives’ will transform the overgrown area of land at the corner of Windsor Road and Brentford Street in Harpurhey into a community allotment. The allotment will be used as a community hub and a training facility for local residents and the wider community. Adactus and partners Groundwork Trust will help provide practical support to all residents that will be involved in the delivery of the project. The land will be cultivated and the allotment will enable the community to grown their own food. Going further, cookery courses will also be offered to help facilitate this aspect of the project and young people who get involved will be able to gain an accredited certificate in horticulture, food hygiene and nutrition.
Tony McMahon, Operations Director for Adactus Housing is delighted for the residents in and around Harpurhey and North Manchester and adds “we see this as just the beginning of a series of projects that Adactus want to support and develop in North Manchester that enables the community to enjoy their environment and live healthier lives Our community model aims to strengthen relationships between derelict land, environmental improvements, healthier living through to educational opportunities and employment. With support from our partners, this can be achieved.
Natalie Tordoff, Head of Regeneration & Worklessness at Adactus said: “Everyone at Adactus and the local neighbourhood in Harpurhey are delighted that ‘Growing Healthy Lives’ has won the £50,000 from The People’s Millions. Securing this funding means that our project now gets the green light and we can make a substantial positive impact in another neighbourhood of North Manchester”.
Manchester City Council, a close partner of Adactus Housing Association endorses the project and offered additional support in publicising ‘Growing Healthy Lives’ in the countdown to the voting day. Councillor Mike Amesbury, Executive Member for Culture and Leisure at Manchester City Council, said: “ We are absolutely delighted that the Harpurhey project won the public vote. A community allotment will be a wonderful resource for all ages and supports the Council’s commitment to increasing the number of allotments across the city.”
Angela Hobson, Groundwork Programme Coordinator said: 'Groundwork are really pleased for the community and Adactus housing. This money will be spent developing a new community resource that will be utlisedutilised by aeveveryone. Wee are looking forward to working in partnership with all parties to deliver a high quality project which improves an area of need - well done Harpurhey".
