New Art Exhibition at the Lowry Centre
Media Invite
PLEASE NOTE THIS IS A MEDIA INVITE ONLY - THE EXHIBITION WILL BE OPEN TO MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC FROM 2 FEBRAUARY TO 24 MAY 2020.
Event: The opening of the new 150 Artists Exhibition at the Lowry Centre.
Date of event: Thursday 30 January 2020.
Time: Speeches will begin at 6.15pm after which there will be an opportunity to view the exhibit.
Location: The Hexagon Room, near the Circle Bar on the first floor, The Lowry Centre, Pier, 8 The Quays, Salford, M50 3AZ
Event Overview:
On Thursday 30 January 2020 we’re launching an art exhibition at the Lowry Centre in Salford, as part of our celebrations of the fact that in 2020 the Together Trust is 150 years old.
The art on display has been created by the children and young people we support, who in many cases have learning difficulties and disabilities, complex needs, communication disorders and autism. As a result they have often struggled to cope in other settings because of their individual barriers to learning, but they’ve found a place in our schools, a place in which they are cared for and supported with specialist care.
In October 2019 we commissioned, with funding from the Arts Council, 14 specially selected local artists to work amongst our services to guide some of the children, young people and adults we support into exploring our 150 years of history.
Working in pairs the artists ran bespoke workshops in our schools, colleges and out in our local communities, creating work using mediums such as music, movement and dance, painting, clay, photography and other forms of craft.
Some of the young people we support can find it difficult to communicate or express themselves in everyday life, and for them working in these mediums, and producing the work they have, can feel very liberating and give them a chance to not only grow and develop as people, but also to contribute to remembering and celebrating all those who’ve come before them.
The Together Trust has quite a remarkable history. The charity was founded in 1870 by two men, Leonard Shaw and Richard Taylor. The inspiration for them to open our first refuge came about after an encounter between them and two homeless boys at the St Ann’s Sunday School in Manchester, where both men served as volunteers.
One Sunday night, after the school had been dismissed, two ragged and hungry boys lingered behind. On being questioned as to why they did not go home they replied that they had no home to go to, something which sadly was all too common in Victorian Manchester.
The two men discovered that one boy slept under a railway arch in Salford, and the other up an old staircase in a Deansgate entry. For Shaw and Taylor this was just plain wrong and there and then both men decided that they would do something about the plight of homeless boys in the city.
They immediately began to canvass local businessmen to raise funds for a night shelter, which they opened within months after that first chance encounter with the two ragged homeless boys.
Within 9 months the home on Quay Street was oversubscribed, and the charity moved to larger premises in Strangeways. In the years that followed we expanded and opened our doors to girls, created new homes throughout Greater Manchester and Cheshire, including residential homes, a seaside convalescent home, a prison mission and a home for children with disabilities.
Our welfare services broadened and work and apprentice schemes were added to our ever growing list of services, which came to include sending thousands of poor children on much needed holidays. We even had use of a training ship, helping to prepare boys for a career at sea.
Today the Together Trust provides 47 services, supporting more than 2,700 children, adults and families each year. Among those services are a fostering service, short breaks and community services, residential homes, schools, special education services and family support. To do this we have a team of nearly 900 people, at dozens of sites across the North West, working flat out to champion the rights, needs and ambitions of the people we support.
Interviews opportunities:
* Mark Lee – Chief Executive, the Together Trust
* Mr Ralph Ellerton - Chair of the Together Trust
*Councillor Charlie McIntyre - the Mayor of Salford
* Contributing artists and young people (through the Media team at the Together Trust only)
Contact: To confirm your attendance/interview requests please contact Alfred Searls at the Together Trust on 0161 283 4885 or Alfred.Searls@togethertrust.org.uk
Please note - in the event that you cannot attend images and quotes can be supplied on request after the event.
Background
The Together Trust is 150 years old this year - happy birthday to us!
The Together Trust is 150 years old this year and throughout 2020 we’ll be celebrating 150 years of supporting children, adults and families in the North West of England. With services across the region we accept referrals not only from the North West but from all over the UK.
Our charity, which was first established in Manchester in 1870, supports more than 2,700 children, adults and families each year, providing a fostering service, short breaks and community services, residential homes, schools, special education services and family support.
Mark Lee, Chief Executive at the Together Trust, said: “We’ve come a long way since 1870, when Leonard Shaw and Richard Taylor founded a ‘Night Refuge for Homeless boys’ on Quay Street in Manchester.
“As demand and needs have changed, we’ve adapted and evolved to meet the needs of families as well as public sector expectations on providers today.
“Our team of nearly 900 colleagues, at dozens of sites, work flat out to champion the rights, needs and ambitions of the people we support. The help, support and generosity of our corporate partners and donors is a vital factor in the ongoing provision of our services. We’re incredibly thankful to all our existing partners and we welcome interest from potential partners and supporters who wish to help us continue our work.
“The work of our founders continues to inspire our modern-day values - our commitment to the people we support never falters because they are at the heart of everything we do. We’re immensely proud of the fact that we’ve been doing this for a century and a half.”
Activities are set to take place throughout the year to celebrate the Trust’s birthday. Julie Isted Director of External Affairs and Governance said: “The anniversary is a very important milestone for us and we’re really excited about the year ahead.
“In fact we began our anniversary activities back in November when 14 specially selected local artists, funded by the Arts Council, began running bespoke workshops in our schools, colleges and out in our local communities, creating work using mediums such as music, movement and dance, painting, clay, photography and other forms of craft.
“Some of that work will be on display, alongside materials telling the story of the Together Trust, at an exhibition that will be running between 2 February and 24 May at the Lowry. We will then hold an exhibition of archives at Central Library in Manchester between September and December.
“Also in 2020 we’ll be unveiling a blue plaque on Sunlight House in Manchester to mark the site of our original building, and a book telling the story of the Together Trust titled ‘The Ever Open Door’ is being published.
“We are grateful to the National Lottery who has agreed to fund the exploration and celebration of our project ‘The Ever Open Door - 150 years of Together Trust’. Their grant will enable the project to be led by young people from across our services. They will help open up our history to the local community and beyond.”
“In addition to all of this we’ll also be marking our 150 anniversary in lots of innovative and creative ways in our schools and in the many events we run throughout the year, such as the Together Trust Music Festival, our memory collecting events, our Join Together Festival and our Christmas carol concert.
“We’ve made sure that we’re placing the people we support at the heart of all of anniversary celebrations and everyone at the Trust is really looking forward to 2020, which looks like it’s going to be an exciting and memorable year!”
To find out more about our first 150 years visit our history pages.