Where we work

We receive borough wide referrals from Bury, Rochdale, Oldham, Bolton and Wigan.

Our main team centre is located in the heart of Bury, however we also run some programme from two hub centres in Rochdale and Bolton.

Local area map

Issues our young people face

The young people that Fairbridge North Manchester engages year on year face a number of complex personal and social issues that may be presenting barriers to progression in their daily lives. As demonstrated by the statistics on this page, the young people of Bury, Rochdale, Oldham, Bolton and Wigan are living their lives amid issues of deprivation, substance misuse, teenage pregnancy, unemployment, homelessness, poor nutrition and mental illness, crime and anti-social behaviour.

The issues that affect these young people however extend beyond each individual to the wider community in which we all live. Fairbridge tackles the key issues of today through intensive tailored support and community based projects that give each young person a chance to contribute positively to their community. Most importantly, these issues are key concerns for the Local Authorities in which we operate, meaning that we can directly support and progress the aims and objectives of the Local Authority, either through our core work or specially commissioned projects.

In particular, Fairbridge North Manchester supports the local crime and safer community strategies, the children and young people’s plans for each area, local participation strategies and numerous aspects of the Local Authority Agreements (including meeting the 5 priorities of the Every Child Matters framework). Fairbridge North Manchester is able to do this by engaging NEET or at risk of NEET young people on our programme, many of whom have a history of offending or anti-social behaviour, alcohol and substance misuse issues, low key skills and very low self-esteem, helping them to move back into mainstream opportunities.

In addition to tackling ingrained behaviours and attitudes our Programme promotes a pro-active approach to healthier lifestyles, approaching issues of obesity, sexual health, substance misuse and mental health.

Local stats

21.9% - The level of binge drinking amongst adults in Bury is significantly worse than the England average of 18%
49.2 per 1,000 The under-18 conception rate in Bury is significantly higher than the England average of 41.1
71.3 per 1,000 - Reported crime levels for young people aged 10-17 years old across Bolton are above the national average of 53 for England & Wales
15.3 per 1,000 misuse drugs in Bolton, compared to the national average of 9.9
42.7% of people in Rochdale live in 20% of the most deprived areas of England.
51.3 per 1,000 of the Rochdale population claim incapacity benefits for mental illness compared to 27.5 nationally
15.2% of Under-15s in Oldham self-assessed themselves as ‘not in good health’ compared to the England average of 11.6%
30.68% of unemployed adults in Oldham are young people aged 16 – 24, compared to 28.39% in the North West and 25.69% nationally
8.6 per 1,000 households in Wigan in 2005-06 were classed as falling under the bracket of Statutory Homelessness compared to 4.4 nationally.
20.3% of Wigan adults can be categorised as Healthy Eaters compared to the England average of 26.3%.