 Older People’s Free Bus Travel for August
For all of August, the around 400,000 older and disabled people in Greater Manchester will benefit from round-the-clock travel on Bee Network buses as part of a new trial. The trial will better connect people to healthcare, leisure and retail opportunities.
Currently, people with TfGM-issued concessionary travel passes can travel for free on buses between 9.30am and midnight during the week and all day on weekends and public holidays.
From Friday (1 August), this pre-9.30am travel restriction will be lifted on a trial basis for a month.
Following the trial, TfGM will analyse passenger feedback, patronage and pass usage before making a decision on whether the move can be made permanent.
Find out more here
 Walking Towards Healthier Communities in Manchester
Manchester Active are excited to shine a spotlight on Bollyfit Active CIC, one of 17 fantastic organisations funded through the £26,500 Manchester Active Walking Grants scheme, part of the Sport England Place Partnership investment into our city.
They recently joined BollyFit Active at Crowcroft Park to capture one of their forest bathing sessions in Crowcroft park, a brilliant addition to their existing women-only fitness offer. Founded by Shamime Jan, BollyFit focuses on supporting South Asian and BAME women to access inclusive, affordable physical activity.
Walking has become an accessible way to introduce more women to movement – especially those who may feel intimidated by traditional exercise.
Watch the full video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5g1J_tk7H7Q
Learn more about walking at https://mcractive.com/walking/
 Our Manchester Voluntary and Community Sector Fund
The £4.5m per year fund from Manchester City Council will support voluntary, community, faith and social enterprise organisations for 3 years from 1 April 2026, to continue to do what they do best.
Deadline Sept 1st
Learn more here
 Job: Programme Lead - Healthy Older Adults, Age Friendly Manchester, Manchester City Council
We would love to hear from you if you have experience of working in health/healthcare associated with older adults.
Position details here
Essential requirements for the role:
• Project Management
• Strategic Thinking
• Planning and Organising
• Communication Skills
• Strategic Planning
• People Management
• Finance
Desirable requirements that would be useful in this role:
Previous experience of working in a health or healthcare setting associated with older adults.
Contract Type: Permanent, Full-Time
Closing Date: 17 August 2025
Interview Date: 8th September 2025
 Webinar: Understand more about the Psychology of Loneliness and Social Isolation
Join the Good Practice Mentors team in this online session which shares how Time to Shine in Leeds, and the 13 other Ageing Better partners across England set out to use a range of techniques to reduce social isolation and loneliness in people 50+. Along the way they found out more about how social isolation and chronic loneliness can affect people, and some techniques that worked to reduce loneliness.
If you find it easier to work when you understand how what you are doing is impacting people, then join them to find out when and why people are lonely, and how you might start to help them tackle this loneliness.
Many of the things learned about reducing loneliness apply to more than just older people. The work was a mixture of academic research and practical activities with real people. You won't find any quick fixes, but this session will offer you some ideas you might be able to use as starting points for your plan.
There will be a chance to talk to others and share ideas during the event.
Event details: Wednesday 13 August, 2-4pm, online
Find out more and register for the session via the Eventbrite.
 Call for Stallholders: Volunteer Centre Manchester’s Volunteering Fair – Saturday 20 September 2025
Volunteer Centre Manchester is inviting expressions of interest from groups and organisations that involve volunteers to take part in our upcoming Volunteering Fair, taking place on Saturday 20 September 2025 in St Ann’s Square, Manchester City Centre.
This high-profile daytime event offers a fantastic opportunity to showcase your work, recruit new volunteers, and connect with the public in one of Manchester’s busiest public spaces.
Whether you're a community group, charity, mutual aid network, or public service involving volunteers — we want you to be part of it. Stallholders will be given space to promote their cause, engage with potential volunteers, and network with others across the city.
There is no cost to take part, and further details will be shared closer to the event.
To register your interest or find out more, please get in touch:
📧 info@volunteercentremanchester.co.uk
📞 0161 830 4770
Let’s make this our biggest, boldest fair yet – we’d love to hear from you!
  Beat the Heat! Cool spaces in Manchester
In Manchester, a heatwave means temperatures of 25°C or more for three consecutive days.
For more information to Beat the Heat see here
 Work for Age UK Manchester
Are you looking for a rewarding role where you can make a difference to older people’s lives? Age UK Manchester have some exciting job opportunities for you.
Befriender:
Are you a people person with experience of older people's issues? You can help fight loneliness by co-ordinating the charity’s Befriending service to help people connect to their communities.
You will provide practical support, such as food shopping, home visits, and manage a team of volunteers who will provide practical and emotional support over the telephone. The role is up to 16 hours a week, paid hourly, and is initially contracted until 1st May 2026.
Administrative Assistant:
Are you friendly and organised with great attention to detail? The charity’s Crossacres Day Centre seeks an Administrative Assistant to support the Day Centre Manager with the running of the centre.
You’ll greet visitors to the centre, manage incoming calls and e-mails, and support with calendar management. The job is full-time, Monday to Friday.
Home Carers:
Want to provide essential care that helps older people stay independent at home? The charity seeks compassionate, reliable home carers to provide tailored and person-centred home support.
You’ll perform a wide range of duties, including personal care, preparing meals and laundering clothes. The role has flexible hours and is paid at an enhanced rate on weekends and bank holidays.
For more information about these roles, or to apply, visit Age UK Manchester’s website here.
 New rules for postal voting
If you applied for a postal vote before 30 October 2023 then you will need to reapply before 31 January 2026 however Manchester City Council are urging people to take action now. You should have already received an email or letter detailing what the next steps are but if you need more information then please call 0161 234 1212 for advice.
 Age Friendly Climate Cafe
A welcoming space for people aged 50 plus to get together and talk about the climate crisis.
What is an Age Friendly Climate Cafe?
An Age Friendly Climate Cafe is a welcoming, action-free community space for people aged 50 plus to have open conversations about how climate change makes us feel. Over drinks and snacks we’ll have an informal and confidential conversation, supported by experienced facilitators. You can choose to share as much or as little as you feel comfortable with.
Participants will have the opportunity to encounter a curated selection of Manchester Museum's objects close-up during the session.
The Age Friendly Climate Cafe is free and will take place in Manchester Museum’s Top Floor Space. Free drinks and snacks (including vegan and gluten free options) will be provided. You must book a place.
When: Wednesday 13th of August
Time: 11 am to 12:30 pm
Where: Manchester Museum, Oxford Road
The Manchester Museum Climate Café programme has been developed with the support of the Climate Psychology Alliance.
You can book via Eventbrite on this link:
https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/age-friendly-climate-cafe-tickets-1291158342359?aff=oddtdtcreator
Or you can contact María José via phone 07818 578 474 or email
maria.ramosacevedo@manchester.ac.uk
 Summer Lunchtime Concerts at the Stoller Hall
15-17 August, 19-22 August, at 1.45pm
This August, the Stoller Hall will be hosting a series of lunchtime concerts as part of Chetham’s International Piano Summer School. These performances will feature 45 minutes of relaxing piano music in the beautiful surroundings of the Stoller Hall’s main auditorium. The Stoller Hall is opposite Manchester Victoria Train Station, with easy access to train, tram and bus services. The hall’s atrium will be open before the concert, with the opportunity to try out pianos and browse music and musical gifts from Forsyth’s Music Shop.
Tickets are just £5.50, and free for under 18s.
Saturday 16 August will also be a special performance for families, with pianist Neil Rutman telling the story of Barbar the Little Elephant along with musical accompaniment.
 Manchester's Senior Club Games Sept 17th
Register Now!
On Wednesday 17th September, Better are hosting the Senior Games at Moss Side Leisure Centre, and we’d like you to take part!
This event aims to bring together those aged 55+ to participate in a mixture of sports competitions, giving you the chance to represent your local leisure centre, socialise with like-minded people and get mentally and physically active. Don't worry, you don't have to be amazing at the activity, just willing to take part and represent your team.
What is the Club Games?
Our corporate mission is to improve the health and wellbeing of the communities we operate within through physical activity and sport. The Club Games first launched in London in 2007 and have grown bigger and better each year!
Last year Manchester held it’s first Senior Club Games with Abraham Moss Leisure Centre winning the overall team trophy. This year, we want to make it bigger and better with more people representing their local centre.
Register as soon as possible here
 Live at Lunchtime 2025 at The Bridgewater Hall
Live at Lunchtime is a series of free Friday lunchtime concerts in the Stalls Foyer at the Bridgewater Hall. The programme runs from every Friday in September and presents a diverse range of classical, contemporary an world music. These informal, unticketed performances run from 12.45pm to 1.30pm and are free to attend.
On Friday 5 September Canter Semper will perform at the Hall.
‘A smouldering blend of jazz, soul and gospel’ according to the Manchester Evening News, Canter Semper are a vintage gospel vocal trio featuring strings, keys, guitar and drums, making for a rich, orchestral, soul-filled soundscape.
Unlike anything else on the Manchester circuit at the moment, their harmonies are distinct, their music drenched in warmth and bursting with sumptuously blended vocals, a vintage gospel/roots hybrid that aims to captivate and transport listeners.
To see the full programme follow the link to our website here or pick up a programme when you next visit the Hall.
When: Friday 5 September 12:45-1:30
Where: The Bridgewater Hall, Lower Mosley Street, M2 3WS
 The stage is set for a massive music-filled take-over of Manchester city centre this summer as MCR Live '25 celebrates the mammoth summer of live music coming to the city.
An incredible 1.3 million music tourists are expected to visit Manchester this summer during an unmissable three months of live music - which gets underway this weekend - from some of the biggest artists on the planet.
To help celebrate what promises to be a sensational summer of sound MCR Live '25 will see music-themed markets, pop-up shops, a festival bar and impromptu performances, as well as fabulous guitar-themed artworks and exhibitions take over the city's streets, squares, shop windows and other venues.
For full details of what is on please see the MCC website.
Plan your journey and get all the latest travel information or download the Bee Network app.
Find out more information about MCR Live '25 events
Find out more information about the Music for the Senses guitar art trail and related activities
 Esea contemporary gallery upcoming events and exhibitions
Slavs and Tatars: The Contest of the Fruits
The Contest of the Fruits' is the first UK institutional solo exhibition by the internationally acclaimed art collective Slavs and Tatars. It is an exploration of language, politics, religion, and humour through the lens of a 19th-century Uighur poem, reimagined as a vibrant animated film and rap battle.
Every last Saturday of the month, join a member of the curatorial team in the gallery for a free guided tour of this exhibition of esea contemporary’s exhibition 'Slavs and Tatars: The Contest of the Fruits.’ The last tour is:
30 August 2025
The 30-minute tour will provide an in-depth walk through for the exhibition, and there will be opportunities for questions and discussions. Drop in, no need to book.
Find out about other events and exhibitions here: https://www.eseacontemporary.org/
When: 30 August 2025
Where: Esea Contemporary, 13 Thomas Street, Manchester, M4 1EU
 The Hallé Orchestra Relaxed Concerts
Join the 26-piece Hallé ensemble for the chance to listen to popular, classical music in a relaxed and informal way.
The orchestra plays a selection of short, easy listening pieces in an intimate setting, all introduced by Hallé players. The audience is paramount: music is chosen to create a relaxing environment offering respite from the pressures of daily life.
When: Wednesday 17 September 2025
Time: 11.30am and 2pm
Where: Hallé St Peter’s, 40 Blossom Street, M4 6BF
There are many moments for audience members to actively participate through singing, shaking shakers and even dancing, and many other moments when carers can enjoy witnessing the impact of the music on their loved ones, for example the tapping of a foot or wave of a hand.
- Concerts last approximately 1 hour
- All tickets are £5
These concerts are particularly suited to those living with dementia and other similar health conditions, adults & children with additional learning needs, their carers or anybody who wishes to experience classical music in a relaxed and informal environment. For future concerts see this website: Relaxed Concerts - The Hallé
For more information on how to book tickets, please contact Jessica Harper: jessica.harper@halle.co.uk
Or you can call the Box Office on 0161 907 9000
Photo credit: 'The Hallé - Alex Burns'
 Boost your health with Wellness Walks - Manchester Leisure Centres
Regular walks can help reduce stress, boost mood, improve heart health, and increase overall fitness—all while enjoying the company of others. Join us for Wellness Walks, designed for all abilities! Choose from:
Indoor walks – Stay active in a comfortable setting with plenty of opportunities to rest.
Outdoor walks – Enjoy fresh air and walking to local green spaces, perfect for relaxation and connection with nature.
Walking with others makes it easier to stay motivated and build healthy habits. No sign-up needed however you can book online or via this link below or on BetterUK app or just turn up and walk your way to better well-being for free!
Weekly walks are available at Abraham Moss, Belle Vue Sports Village, Hough End Leisure Centre, Moss Side Leisure Centre, North City Family and Fitness Centre, National Cycling Centre,
Visit this website to see timings: Boost Your Health with Wellness Walks!
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