Working with Greater Manchester’s Voluntary and Community organisations

The population of Greater Manchester is rich with diversity. Here at the Greater Manchester Cancer Alliance, it is important that our services reflect the needs of our population. This is particularly important when considering the role of health inequalities and how we can work to reduce these. You can read more about this in our Health Inequalities Statement.

We recognise the value in collaborating with the Voluntary, Community, Faith and Social Enterprise (VCFSE) sector. The important knowledge and relationships that have been nurtured over many years by these organisations are critical in helping us to have an accurate understanding of the needs of our local populations.

We are very keen to build new connections and work with local groups to ensure we have a diverse range of views from people affected by cancer across Greater Manchester. If you are a Voluntary, Community, Faith and/or Social Enterprise organisation and are interested in working with us, please get in contact with us by emailing gmcancer.voices@nhs.net. We’d really love to speak with you.

Want to hear more first? Take a look at our case study below.

Find out more about different ways in which you can get involved by clicking on one of the links below: 

The ‘This Van Can’ project

‘This Van Can’ is an example of a recent project with a focus on black men’s health. It aims to increase engagement with the NHS and awareness of prostate cancer.

This project, a prostate cancer awareness roadshow, is particularly targeted at black men aged over 45 who are more at risk of developing prostate cancer than other men. 1 in 4 black men will develop prostate cancer in their lifetime, compared to 1 in 8 men in the general population. The NHS mobile ‘clinic in a van’ has toured targeted areas within Greater Manchester, to talk to men about their risk of prostate cancer.

The project involved collaboration between several organisations including:

Sotonye Tolofari, Clinical Lead for Urological Cancer at the Greater Manchester Cancer Alliance, talks about the benefits of engaging with a wide range of individuals and VCFSE groups on this project.

These VCFSE groups shaped the way the project was set up, communicated, publicised and delivered to help make it as successful as possible for the target audience. The campaign also features real men from the African Caribbean community – Winston Carrington and Gilbert Morgan. Both men have lived experience of prostate cancer and were introduced to the Alliance by the teams at Can Survive-UK and the BHA.

10GM

We also understand the benefits of aligning with organisations and connections that have already been established across Greater Manchester. That’s why we are working in collaboration with 10GM, a joint venture to support the local VCFSE sector in Greater Manchester.

10GM work to champion the VCFSE sector to improve the economic, social and environmental well-being of Greater Manchester’s people and communities. 10GM is supported by a central team and has close working relationships with Local VCFSE Infrastructure Organisations (LIOs) in all the boroughs of Greater Manchester to deliver a wide range of collaborative projects and activities.

10GM is working in collaboration with the Greater Manchester Cancer Alliance to find innovative ways to achieve a permanent reduction in cancer inequalities and inequity.

You can find out more about our collaboration with 10GM on the 10GM website.