As we settle into a new week this Monday morning, we are still buzzing from what was a truly fantastic evening last Thursday, 26th March, at the Flourish ‘Winners SOUP’ event! It was an absolute privilege to be in a room overflowing with passion, community spirit, and some of the most inspiring social entrepreneurs from across Greater Manchester.
Hosted at the wonderful SofraMcr—a fantastic social enterprise café that provided us with a warm welcome and absolutely delicious food—the night was a special ‘Winners’ Edition’. It brought together past winners of the Flourish SOUP ‘pitch for cash’ events, giving us the opportunity to catch up, network, and take to the stage once again to pitch for a cash award to further our social ventures.
The event was brilliantly brought to life in collaboration with students from Manchester Metropolitan University (MMU) and generously backed by MSEA, Manchester City Council (MCC), and the National Lottery. It is always so heartening to see such strong local partnerships coming together to champion grassroots initiatives in our region.
In total, there were eight passionate pitchers on Thursday night, and the standard of the presentations was nothing short of brilliant. It was truly humbling to hear about all the exciting, community-focused work happening right on our doorstep.
When it was our turn to take the floor, we spoke from the heart about our mission here at Salford Community Upskilling. For those who might be new to our journey, our goal is to help and support our local community, alongside asylum seekers and refugees. We do this by providing essential English language (ESOL) and ICT courses, interpreting services, and employability skills training. Our ultimate aim is to equip individuals with the necessary skills, knowledge, and confidence they need to successfully integrate into society and build a brighter future.
The room was incredibly supportive, and we are absolutely thrilled to share that we were named as one of the runners-up on the night, successfully securing vital seed funding!
A massive congratulations must go to the overall winners, Rehab Fitness, for their fantastic pitch, as well as our fellow runners-up, AspireHer, who also took home seed funding. It is a joy to share the podium with such impactful, driven organisations.
This seed funding is a massive boost for Salford Community Upskilling. It will go directly towards enhancing our courses and reaching even more vulnerable people who rely on our support to navigate their new lives in the UK.
We would like to extend a massive thank you to Flourish, the MMU students, SofraMcr, MSEA, MCC, the National Lottery, and everyone who attended, listened, and voted last week. Your belief in our work fuels our commitment to creating a more inclusive and empowered community in Salford and beyond.
Here’s to the power of community, collaboration, and continuous upskilling!
