University cooks up a new partnership with local charities

Over and above the day-to-day activity, the University team behind The Old Fire Station has now started working with academic colleagues from across campus to deliver additional value to the University and the local community.  

One example is a recent collaboration with the School of Health and Society and one of their partners, Salford Foundation (https://www.salfordfoundation.org.uk/).

In June and July this year The Old Fire Station launched a series of three workshops with Salford Foundation for members of The Shed to gain first-hand experience of what happens behind the scenes, and the range of skills needed.

Across the different workshops the group spent time with the bakers, chef, and front of house team and enjoyed hands-on experience, from how to make different coffees, French toast and pizza to learning basic cooking and baking skills. The group were also given a tour of Lark Hill Brewery, courtesy of the Head Brewer.

Mike Brown, Director of Strategic Partnerships, and project sponsor commented “The University of Salford has a long history of public and community engagement, and through our civic commitment we work to deliver social value to our community. It was a real pleasure to work with Salford Foundation and the workshops were a great way to link the University and The Old Fire Station to our Salford community. Our staff really enjoyed the workshops and meeting the group.”

Salford Foundation’s Terry Simmons said: “A massive thanks to all at The Old Fire Station and Lark Hill Brewery. You have given so much to the people who attend The Shed, from wellbeing to work experience and a great deal of enjoyment. I have enjoyed working with yourselves and would definitely like to do it all again.”

Professor Jane McAdam, Associate Dean for Enterprise and Engagement  at the University added: “As a School we are constantly looking for ways to improve the health and wellbeing of our local population, around the university but also in the wider Greater Manchester area. It’s not only part of our civic purpose it’s really important to our academics and students, and we’ve initiated many schemes with Salford Foundation which have been great learning opportunities for our students.”

“The workshops at The Old Fire Station are typical of the types of projects we love to see happening and it’s great to hear how much the group enjoyed them. We look forward to seeing how this can develop further in future.”