Together Trust Archive

Provision for boys in the Charity’s care once they reached working age came in the form of Homes for Working Boys, also known as Young Men’s Homes or Working Lads Homes. Established in 1873 just a few years after the Charity began, these homes accommodated 15 to 18 year olds who had been cared for by the Charity as children and were now in regular employment either in the workshops of the Charity’s Central Refuge or elsewhere in the city. No such provision was provided for girls who often went into domestic service. One home of 12 boys was first established in Grosvenor Street, Oxford Road but this was felt to be too far from the Charity’s centre of operations at Strangeways and the boys could not be supervised sufficiently meaning the home was soon moved to Lower Broughton. Four homes in this area had been established by 1877 each with around 15 boys apprenticed to various trades. The homes were under the care of a ‘father’ and ‘mother’. The boys paid towards their board but once they...

April 2021 will see the world’s first ‘Care Experienced History Month’ aimed at recognising, celebrating and commemorating the lives of care-experienced people. It will also highlight the issues faced by those currently in and leaving the care system. The initiative is a partnership between organisations and individuals around the world and will seek to build communities and increase knowledge of the history of care. –  Care Experienced History Month - Coram Story  

Today is May Day , a day often observed by European cultures to celebrate springtime; filled with traditional dance (often around a maypole), and, chiefly in England, the crowning of the May Queen . 

I came across this picture in the archive the other day.  Young Men’s Institute football team, 1917 It shows the Young Men’s Institute football squad from 1917 posing for a team photograph. It seems a relevant topic to talk about seen as we’re currently in the middle of the 2014 world cup. The Young Men’s Institute at this time catered for boys of working age who had no permanent residence to go to. It housed 35 young men and was largely made up by those who in early life had passed through the Refuge. Each youth had full board, a separate cubicle, use of a comfortable sitting room, news room, games room, bathroom and gymnasium at a cost of 10 shillings per week.