University of Manchester working in partnership with Greater Manchester Citizens

The University of Manchester works with Greater Manchester Citizens, an alliance of community, faith, education, health and third-sector organisations, to support community organising and action on issues affecting people across the region. University colleagues contribute insights, participate in research collaborations and engage in alliance-wide discussions addressing priorities including youth mental health, hate and discrimination, social cohesion and support for people on low incomes. The partnership helps connect communities with regional decision-makers and supports collective action towards more equitable outcomes across Greater Manchester.

Beyond the pitch: Start-ups connect

The Manchester Venture Builder programme, delivered by the Masood Entrepreneurship Centre, supports University of Manchester students and recent graduates to develop early-stage businesses through tailored mentoring, practical workshops and business development support. Its Demo Day connects emerging founders with investors, industry professionals and Manchester’s entrepreneurial community, helping them build professional relationships, access expertise and explore opportunities for growth. In October, ten start-ups presented their businesses to approximately 250 attendees.

How community placements are shaping future doctors at Manchester

Service learning placements are a mandatory part of the second year of The University of Manchester’s MBChB course, giving medical students experience of working with community organisations beyond traditional healthcare settings. Students undertake placements with organisations including hospices, food banks, third-sector organisations and domestic abuse charities, developing their communication and professional skills while exploring health inequalities, community support and multidisciplinary care. Through activities responding to community needs, students gain a deeper understanding of the social factors affecting health and how community organisations support patients outside hospitals and GP practices.

Click here to read more about the impact these placements have on local communities.

Accounting students put their skills to work helping Manchester charities

The Social Responsibility Placement Programme connects postgraduate accounting students at The University of Manchester with local registered charities, enabling students to apply their skills to real-world challenges while supporting community organisations. Students volunteer around one day a week over four to six weeks, helping charities organise and analyse financial information, improve reporting and develop financial management tools. Launched in summer 2025 with two charities, the programme expanded to five in its second year and is expected to grow further.

Accelerating impact-led graphene entrepreneurship

Highly commended in the 2026 Making a Difference Awards, this project supports researchers and entrepreneurs to turn graphene discoveries into products and technologies with positive social and environmental impact. Through the Graphene Innovation Engineering Centre (GEIC), participants access specialist expertise, facilities and support to develop and validate technologies, build prototypes, test materials at scale and prepare for commercial growth. The project has supported more than 70 graphene start-ups originating from The University of Manchester, helping bridge the gap between research and real-world application.

The University of Manchester Innovation Festival

The Festival, which launched in 2026, will occur for 1 week annually, to bring together researchers, students, entrepreneurs, businesses, investors and civic leaders. Through hands-on workshops, live demonstrations and networking events, the Festival will showcase how Manchester’s people, partnerships and ideas are addressing real-world challenges and changing lives locally and globally. Attendees will discover emerging technologies, meet the people turning research into action and explore opportunities to collaborate. 

Whether you are developing an idea, looking for partners, interested in supporting responsible innovation or simply curious about how change happens, the Festival offers an accessible opportunity to connect and get involved. 

Relaxed Graduation Ceremony

The Relaxed Graduation Ceremony offers an alternative way for students to celebrate their achievements in a setting designed to make a traditional ceremony more accessible. It includes a smaller cohort of graduates, a quieter atmosphere, inclusive design elements and a dedicated Quiet Room, followed by an informal reception.

Graduation should be a celebration for students, but for many people the format can feel overwhelming. The ceremony has also shown the value of designing access in a way that is open and inclusive. To increase participation the project was not restricted only to students with a formal diagnosis or existing support pathway. By advertising the ceremony to all students, the project avoided placing the burden on individuals to prove they needed support, while still improving access for disabled and neurodivergent students. 

Challenge Accepted

Challenge Accepted is the University of Manchester’s ambitious fundraising and volunteering campaign. Whether you give your time, expertise or philanthropic support, you are part of the Manchester community making a difference. The campaign is crucial for delivering our strategy to 2035, From Manchester for the world. We’re uniting alumni, donors, staff, students and civic, industry and community partners to tackle the world’s toughest challenges and transform lives locally and globally. Our entire university community can help create meaningful action and channel collective power into change – including colleagues, students, alumni and our partners.

Do you want to take on the challenge? Find out how you can get involved! 

Martin Harris Centre: Breaking Barriers

The Martin Harris Centre: Breaking Barriers initiative developed from an initial dementia friendly project into a wide-ranging programme to improve accessibility, inclusion and community engagement. The Martin Harris Centre now delivers relaxed performances with British Sign Language interpretation, intergenerational music activities, school partnerships, and regular outreach in SEND and community settings.

Read the full case study and watch the accompanying film.

Hedgehog Friendly Campus Bronze Accreditation

The University of Manchester has achieved Bronze accreditation through the Hedgehog Friendly Campus initiative, recognising the efforts of a staff and student action group to support hedgehog conservation on campus. Coordinated by Students Organising for Sustainability (SOS-UK) and the British Hedgehog Preservation Society, the initiative encourages universities to take practical action to protect hedgehogs and improve habitats for wildlife.

CareLoop

CareLoop is a digital tool developed by The University of Manchester with NHS clinicians and people with lived experience to help prevent mental health crises and relapse. A mobile app and clinician dashboard enable users to track daily wellbeing while care teams identify early warning signs and provide timely support. Clinical trials show it is safe, effective and supports preventative care, helping reduce pressure on inpatient services. Now advancing through CareLoop Health, the innovation is being adopted more widely, with NHS rollout and international pilots supporting its continued development and role in improving equitable access to care.

UK-Kenya Partnership: Advancing Intersectional Gender Equality

Furniture4Reuse Store

The University of Manchester’s Furniture4Reuse store extends the life of surplus furniture by redistributing it across campus and to local charities and community groups. The initiative supports sustainability by reducing waste and carbon emissions, while helping projects like Biko Bikes, a student‑led initiative making sustainable travel more accessible. It also supports Essentials, the University’s student basic needs centre, alongside local organisations including schools and Hulme Community Garden Centre, ensuring valuable resources are reused where they are most needed and create a positive impact across the community. 

Check out this video for more information. 

Partnership with Co-op Academy Medlock primary school

The University of Manchester is partnered with Co-op Academy Medlock in Ardwick, strengthening connections between the University and the local community. University of Manchester students deliver a range of engaging presentations, on topics including their passions, cultures and educational journeys, to pupils at the school. For the pupils, this provides valuable opportunities to learn about new topics and perspectives. For the university students, it offers meaningful experience in planning and delivering presentations, developing public speaking skills, and building confidence while engaging with the local community.

100% Zero Landfill on Main Campus

The University of Manchester are 100% ‘Zero Landfill’ on Main Campus. Our general, clinical, and offensive waste is now fully diverted from landfill. Instead of landfill, our non-recyclable general waste now goes through a process known as Energy from Waste (EfW), a waste management method that converts non-recyclables into electricity and heat. Once waste is collected on campus, it is transported to a waste transfer station nearby, where it is ‘bulked up’ before being sent to an EfW facility. At the EfW facility, it is burned under safe and controlled conditions. The process of burning the waste generates heat, which is then used to power steam turbines and produce electricity, ensuring that every by-product (which includes ash and metals) is recovered and reused.

Infected Blood Inquiry Memorial 

The University of Manchester is the permanent home of the Infected Blood Inquiry Memorial, which honours the more than 30,000 people who were infected with HIV, Hepatitis and vCJD after receiving contaminated blood products in the 1970s and 1980s. Its presence at the University will support research, teaching and public engagement, particularly in areas relating to patient safety, ethical practice in healthcare, trust, and health inequalities. Through exhibitions, teaching programmes and public events the memorial will remain accessible to the public, helping to ensure that the experiences of those affected continue to be heard and understood.  

Greater Manchester Colleges partnership 

The University of Manchester, in partnership with Wigan & Leigh College and the wider Greater Manchester Colleges network, deliver a programme that places PhD researchers directly into Further Education (FE) classrooms across the region. Developed through the Greater Manchester Civic University Agreement, the initiative enables postgraduate researchers to teach up to 20 hours per week in FE settings, providing specialist expertise in priority subjects such as engineering, STEM and digital skills. In turn, the programme offers researchers valuable, paid teaching experience while helping colleges tackle critical local and regional skills gaps.

No Time to Waste

Our No Time to Waste sustainability platform makes it easy and rewarding for staff and students to build sustainable habits. Users are rewarded green points, that lead to monthly prizes, for logging sustainable activities. To further encourage sustainable habits our travel app CommuteUoM is designed to make low-carbon commuting easier by helping staff and students to carpool safely, plan public transport routes and more.

CARA (Council for At Risk Academics)

We are a founding member of Cara (the Council for At Risk Academics) and offer up to ten Cara Fellowships each year. Our Cara Fellowships provide sanctuary and financial assistance to academics worldwide who cannot safely continue their work due to conflict, oppression, or persecution. Additionally offering support through personalised guidance about visas, advice about accommodation and help with planning for the future. 

Food Made Good 3-star rating

The University catering services, including UniCafe outlets, Food In Residence, and HospitalityOnCampus, hold a three-star rating in the Food Made Good Standard, awarded by the Sustainable Restaurant Association (SRA). This certification recognises outstanding leadership in sustainable and ethical sourcing (procurement), community impact, and environmental responsibility across University food services, and is valid until December 2027. The Food Made Good assessment scored us:  

• 79% for Sourcing – due to our Fairtrade leadership, responsible and local procurement, and prioritisation of plant-forward menus with higher welfare animal products .
• 88% for Society – for treating colleagues fairly, promoting healthy menus, and operation of community fridges on campus . 
• 84% for Environment – reflecting our strong action of waste reduction, Net Zero commitments, and student engagement . 

Floreeda Partnership

The University of Manchester and Manchester School of Architecture are partnered with acrylic manufacturer Floreeda to repurpose plastic waste through REFLO, a circular recycling process that transforms student modelmaking offcuts into new acrylic sheets. Floreeda’s REFLO process converts end-of-life acrylic into granules, which are levelled, heated, and pressed into new sheets, enabling multiple reuses and supporting a closed-loop, circular economy. 

• Find out more on the University partnership 
• Find out more on REFLO

Sustainability Champions Programme

The Sustainability Champions Programme is an opportunity for passionate students to take on an additional role alongside their degree programme to help promote sustainable change. Student champions are organised into teams based upon their personal interests in environmental sustainability. These subject areas include nature, travel and transport, energy and carbon, sustainable food, reuse and recycling and our hedgehog champions. In teams, our champions plan and deliver events to promote sustainability, for instance events focused on reducing the environmental impact of Halloween as a celebration, demonstrating how the Champions programme is a vital mechanism in embedding sustainable thinking through community engagement and social practice. 

Find out more here. 

Imprinted Diagnostics

Imprinted Diagnostics, a University of Manchester spinout, has created a diagnostic device designed to redefine emergency cardiac care by delivering rapid, lab quality diagnostics at the point of need. The portable device delivers accurate troponin readings from a finger prick in under 30 minutes, dramatically reducing patient waiting times in emergency and critical care settings. By eliminating the need for external lab processing, frontline clinicians can make faster, life-saving decisions. After successful early tests on 50 patient samples, Imprinted Diagnostics is now preparing to scale up development, supported by a £75,000 UnitM innovation award from the University. 

Visit Imprinted Diagnostics to find out more. 

Building Bridges Project

Through the Building Bridges Project, we organise community gatherings across different venues in South Manchester to explore how to foster social cohesion and tackle hate crime. These events aim to bring together diverse communities, creating safe spaces to listen, share experiences, and build understanding. These local gatherings have enabled community members, including asylum seekers and Muslim residents, who were particularly affected by the unrest, to share their stories, hopes and fears, exploring how grassroots leaders can lead challenging but constructive conversations within their communities. To support this work, we facilitated mediated dialogue training for 20 local leaders involved in the project. The training, delivered by the Peace Collective, helped participants develop the skills needed to hold respectful and inclusive discussions on complex social issues. 

SEED Changemakers

SEED Change-makers is a student-led  initiative developed by the University’s School of Environment, Education and Development (SEED). It empowers undergraduate and postgraduate students to drive meaningful change. The programme provides a dynamic platform for students to transform their passions into impactful action through leading and collaborating on innovative social responsibility projects. For example, students launched the Give It, Don’t Bin It campaign to reduce waste left behind in student accommodation during move-out periods, and they have hosted thought-provoking lectures on active citizenship and rethinking sustainable community support.