A Hidden Talent brings joy to our centre

We have been supporting Clive who tragically had been choosing to sleep on the streets out of fear after he was threatened with violence at his home, he had no money to afford a move and no way of moving his furniture out of his home if he could afford the move.

Clive's home was a council property and they helped him with a managed move to a new property in Greater Manchester. Unfortunately, it was unfurnished and far from the support services he relied upon meaning that he could not afford to commute back and forth. He returned to sleeping on the streets in the city centre, coming to Barnabus for food, showers and essentials but it was an exhausting, unsustainable life.

Every Wednesday afternoon we host a music therapy session with Nordoff Robbins at the Beacon and one rainy day, Clive attended. Whilst speaking with him about music we found out that he used to play the clarinet, so the music therapist arranged to get a clarinet ready for the next music session. Together we waited eagerly hoping that he would be able to show up and play.

“That touched my soul, and I feel calm”

A friend who heard Clive play

He did and despite holding a clarinet for the first time in a long time he played, touching everyone in the room touched with the beautiful songs he played. Listen to one of them here!

Further to this, we were able to get Clive some support with his travel costs and using our van we transported all of his furniture to his new home allowing him, finally to move off the streets and into a home again.

Our music sessions have been incredible not only have they allowed people like Clive to reconnect with music and to share their love for it to others in the room, it has also allowed people who have never played an instrument before to learn and make music together. It is a therapeutic activity and also a great way to encourage conversation about music and everyone’s individual memories and experiences surrounding it.

“I find music is really therapeutic for me because it helps me express things

without having to talk ”

A friend who attends our music therapy session

We are also delighted to have been able to quickly intervene to help Clive off the streets, an early intervention is vital to limiting the mental physical tole of rough sleeping. We look forward to supporting him further as he continues to build in his recovery from homelessness.

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Barnabus has been supporting people experiencing homeless in Manchester for over 30 years. Everything we do comes down to one thing: to help people in their journey off the streets. No matter how long it takes, we’ll be here, every step of the way. Helping someone get a bed isn’t enough on its own. The traumas people carry with them require intensive support to help them rebuild their lives. We walk with people on their journey off the streets. From the bottom of our heart, thank you
A Hidden Talent brings joy to our centre

Every Wednesday afternoon we host a music therapy session with Nordoff Robbins at the Beacon and one rainy day, Clive attended. Whilst speaking with him about music we found out that he used to play the clarinet, so the music therapist arranged to get a clarinet ready for the next music session. Together we waited eagerly hoping that he would be able to show up and play.
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Please support our work with donations of the items we are short of but need to run our services everyday. You can also support us through ordering urgently needed items online to be delivered to our door.
Volunteer with us

Our wonderful volunteers are the heart of what we do and without them, we couldn’t do the work we do to get people housed. We have volunteers from all over Greater Manchester, as well as Cheshire and Lancashire, all age groups and all walks of life.
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If you’ve walked the streets of Manchester, you’ve almost certainly passed by a rough sleeper. In fact, you’ve probably noticed that there are more people living and sleeping out on the streets. In 2010, the official rough sleeper figure was 7. In 2018, it was 94. Unfortunately, we know that in reality, the number is much higher. Please read on to find out more about homelessness in our city.
ARE YOU READY TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE?

We currently have the following vacancies
I'M HOMELESS AND I NEED HELP

Barnabus helps adults who are homeless – whether you’re living on the streets, in temporary accommodation or at risk of homelessness. If you have a family with dependents under the age of 18 or are under 18 yourself, we recommend that you contact your local authority immediately.
How we're helping

The stress and anxiety people can suffer when they are homeless means they often feel afraid to reach out and taking that small step towards getting help can seem like a mammoth task. That’s why our team is there to help from the start, giving tailored support and advice every single step of the way.
Our history

It all started in 1991 with one couple, some sandwiches and a flask of hot coffee. Walking the streets of Manchester, our founder Peter Green could not believe that there were people on his doorstep who had nothing. So, with a little help from his Christian faith, he set out to do something. Luckily, Peter and his wife Beryl had plenty of love – and sandwiches – to share.
Great Manchester Run, Sunday 26th May, 2024

We love this supporting our sponsored runners at this event. Set your self the personal goal of taking part in one of Europe's biggest 10km races and raising funds to change the lives of people without a home and we will do all we can to support you.
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