Together Trust Archive

I have recently been exploring the charity's magazine, begun under the title The Christian Worker in 1879 and later becoming The Children's Haven in 1895 it was designed to promote Manchester and Salford Boys' and Girls' Refugees and Homes to the local community and encourage donations. There was a proliferation of newspapers and magazines from the mid-nineteenth century influenced by increased literacy in the population, a rise in consumer spending and a reduction in the cost of production. The charity recognised that a magazine was an effective way of communicating their work and seeking support from the local community, much as the Trust's social media accounts do now. There's one regular feature in the magazine sometimes called 'Notes of a Month's Work' or 'Leaves from the Diary of a Refuge...' which describe the circumstances under which children arrived at the Orphan Homes. These stories often describe young children in dire circumstanc...

In 2019, the Together Trust secured a generous grant from the National Lottery Heritage Fund to support the charity’s 150th anniversary celebrations and community projects in 2020. As part of this grant we are digitising and making accessible the charity’s annual reports dating from 1870-1919.

The monthly magazines created by the Manchester and Salford Boys' and Girls' Refuges and Homes have always been an interesting representation of the charity’s work and activities. Originally established in 1879 as The Christian Worker , the magazine aimed to provide news and events about the charity to interested parties. Consequently, it gave a more detailed account of the services and looked more into the social aspects of the charity rather than the administrative ones.

The Together Trust has a a series of books in its archive designed to promote the workings of the charity to the Manchester and Salford community. Originally seen in a section of a magazine written by the charity as an offshoot to its committee's Christian missionary interests, known as The Christian Worker, it expanded into a magazine wholly dedicated to the charity from 1895 when it became  The Children’s Haven.  The latter aimed to disseminate news of the charity, encourage donations and advertise events and meetings to the public.  Children’s page from The Christian Worker