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Young people leading change in their communities.

Welcome to The Agency Manchester, run by Contact since 2013.

Every year we run programmes aimed at empowering young people to become the creative leaders and change-makers of their communities.

Scroll down to learn more about getting involved, and listen to 2023 Agent Sufyaan on BBC Radio Manchester below!

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    ‘The Agency has given me the chance to be in a positive environment, it has helped me to have hope, and to see that there is another page to life, another perspective.’

    Farhad, The Agency

    What is The Agency?

    The Agency is a creative entrepreneurship programme enabling young people aged 15 to 25 from some of the most underserved areas in the UK to generate social change projects based on the needs they identify in their own communities. The Agency was originally developed by the Brazilian theatre maker, activist and journalist Marcus Faustini in the favelas of Rio De Janeiro.

    The programme was brought to the UK through a partnership between Battersea Arts Centre (BAC), Contact and People Palace Projects (PPP). Instead of asking what they can do to help young people through the arts, they thought about how they can pool their resources, knowledge and expertise to foster change based on the desires of young people.

    Read all about our recent successful Agents here, and here.

      ‘It’s had a massive impact on my life, it’s inspired and empowered me.’

      Samuel, The Agency

      How do we usually recruit?

      We provide young people (or Agents) with the professional training, support and advice they need to generate new innovative ideas. Agents pitch their ideas to an expert panel that decide which projects will be receiving seed funding of £2,000 and additional support, helping their ideas grow and reach bigger audiences.

      Over the past 5 years over 266 young people have taken part in The Agency in Cardiff, Belfast, Manchester, London, Southampton, Brent and Waltham Forest, with projects receiving £178,547 in funding.

      To learn more, head here. 

      How did it start?

      The Agency was originally developed by the Brazilian theatremaker and journalist Marcus Faustini in the favelas of Rio de Janeiro, where the project has become a major force for change – Agencia de Redes para Juventude.

      The Agency began in the UK in the Moston and Harpurhey areas of North Manchester, and the Clapham Junction and Battersea areas of London (in collaboration with Battersea Arts Centre and People’s Palace Projects). In 2017, The Agency was awarded £883,771 by the Big Lottery Fund to grow the project nationally to communities in Belfast and Cardiff in collaboration with FabLab Belfast and The National Theatre of Wales.

      👀 Interested in establishing The Agency in your local community? Talk to The Agency today at this link here. 

      Houses of Parliament

      In 2019, Agency participants from Manchester and London presented to politicians and policy-makers at the Houses of Parliament, speaking about their projects and the impact of the programme on their communities. The project was also the focus of a major Guardian article: Knives, gangs and kids: how to break the cycle.

      Find The Agency on Social Media:

      Head to their website here to find out more.

      You can keep up to date with The Agency by following the @agency_change accounts on Twitter and Instagram and liking the page on Facebook.

      In 2019, we published a detailed report on the delivery of The Agency. You can view it here.

      You can also watch a selection of films created for The Agency on YouTube

      The Agency is funded by The National Lottery Community Fund  and Kristian Gerhard Jebsen Foundation. The UK pilot was funded by the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation.

      • Ages
        Aged 15-25 and based in Moston or Harpurhey
      • Contact

        Bianca Prince | Agency Project Manager (Manchester) | biancaprince@contactmcr.com

      • Details

        Annually between September – April

      • THE AGENCY 21/22

        Farhad pitched his project Potential which hopes to create opportunities for young people to unlock viable careers by building reciprocal relationships with businesses and entrepreneurs across the UK. Potential provides education and development programmes that sit alongside specialist services including consultation and public speaking.

        Learn more about Potential here: www.potentialmcr.co.uk

         

      • THE AGENCY 21/22

        Hannah was supported to build Ludi Juegos Jocs which brings people together in Moston and Harpurhey to learn games from other cultures and achieve cultural cohesion.

        The aim of the project is for young people to tackle racism in the area, make new friends and come together through play.

         

      • THE AGENCY 21/22

        The Agents of 2022 include Dorcas, who launched Kulture Fest, a celebration of African culture in North Manchester.

        Featuring a range of local Manchester artists, including HERchester, Kofi Gyamfi, Richard Kankendo, Kulture Fest saw hordes of audiences united over food, music and shared experience.

         

      • THE AGENCY 21/22

        Pedro is developing Off the Ropes with his seed fund, a boxing project that supports teenagers to channel their emotions through boxing.

         

      • THE AGENCY 2019/20

        EMBRACING ME - Dasha Foster

        Embracing Me is a creative project tailored to new Year 7's struggling with the challenges of fitting in. Embracing Me delivers body image workshops in high schools in the Moston and Harpurhey area.

        The project will inspire young people to create artwork which celebrates and reflects their individuality.

        The project will finish with an exhibition of the art work produced.

         

      • THE AGENCY 2019/20

        DAWN TO THE LIGHT - Demereece Green, Ahtasham Akhtar, Aaliyah Nesbeth

        Dawn To The Light is a video game which spreads awareness about mental health and acts as an interactive form of therapy with in-game coping methods.

        Our mission is to aid in the reduction of young people suffering with poor mental health and increase the confidence of young people in speaking about mental health.

         

      • THE AGENCY 2019/20

        We:Integrate - Saphia Gahimbare

        We: Integrate helps to rehabilitate ex-offenders back into society by giving them a voice through the creative mediums of music, poetry and short stories.

        The mission is to try and unite young ex-offenders together by being in a space where they can explore their creative selves and lived experiences.

         

      • The Agency 2018/19

        Featuring:

        SOMETHING TO SAY - creating a book written by black people age 13-21 from the local community to share positive and inspirational stories.

        CLAY HELP - delivering clay workshops for young people aged 8-18 based in Moston experiencing mental health issues.

        EMPOWHERR - liberating females to participate in sport and competition.

         

      • The Agency 2017/18

        Featuring:
        DYNAMIC BEGINNINGS: Singing workshops with showcase culminations looking at changing the perceptions of young people from Moston and Harpurhey.

        GCSE CLOUD: A GCSE revision app for young people to support them through their exams offering bespoke learning structures.

        EmPOWherr: A female focused sports project looking to empower young woman in to taking up a career in sports.

        Find out more
      • The Agency 2016/17

        Featuring:
        AFROBASE Afro-Carribbean festival

        OPEN MINDS BUT SILENT SOUNDS' supporting young people's mental health

        CONSOLE CODE coding programme

        REEL IT IN community fishing project

        Find out more
      • The Agency 2015/16

        Featuring:

        3 POINTS basketball project

        BOUNDLESS BOOKS a book-share and writing programme for young people in care

        AMPLIFY a new music platform.

        Find out more
      • Image Credit: Olalekan Victor Oderinde Photography
      • Image Credit: Olalekan Victor Oderinde Photography
      • Image Credit: Olalekan Victor Oderinde Photography
      • Image Credit: Olalekan Victor Oderinde Photography
      • Image Credit: Olalekan Victor Oderinde Photography
      • Image Credit: Olalekan Victor Oderinde Photography
      • Image Credit: Olalekan Victor Oderinde Photography
      • Image Credit: Olalekan Victor Oderinde Photography
      • Image Credit: Olalekan Victor Oderinde Photography
      • Image Credit: Olalekan Victor Oderinde Photography
      • Image Credit: Olalekan Victor Oderinde Photography
      • Image Credit: Olalekan Victor Oderinde Photography
      • Image Credit: Olalekan Victor Oderinde Photography
      • Image Credit: Olalekan Victor Oderinde Photography
      • Image Credit: Olalekan Victor Oderinde Photography
      • Image Credit: Olalekan Victor Oderinde Photography
      • Image Credit: Olalekan Victor Oderinde Photography
      • Image Credit: Olalekan Victor Oderinde Photography

      Credits & Partners

      • Big Lottery Fund
      • Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation
      • Battersea Arts Centre
      • People's Palace Projects