Street Soccer Manchester
Street Soccer Manchester began in October 2005 as a collaborative partnership between Barnabus and Manchester City Mission. Initially named Barnabus F.C. the project brought together the sports-based expertise of the Mission and the homeless community of Manchester's city centre which Barnabus serves. The project aimed to engage men of all ages by providing a weekly, football-based activity with a qualified coach, equipment and a high quality surface on which to train. Improving individual fitness was a priority as well as building a friendly team environment. Players are encouraged to make a commitment to attend regularly, to be on time for all training sessions and competitions, and to adhere to a signed code of conduct which sets the standard for behaviour for the whole squad, including the volunteers! The team has entered a number of local and national tournaments and has had a number of successes including being the Streets Games 5-a-side Champions of 2008.
As a team we try to cultivate a sense of community and family amongst the players who may not have that level of support elsewhere. The relationships built through the training sessions provide the foundation for further assisting each player whether that be through addressing one-off support needs, such as providing a character reference, or ongoing support including one-to-one mentoring.
One of the central aims has always been to help realise the potential of each individual who partakes, helping them to leave behind the stigma of homelessness. In doing so our hope is that they find their real identity in Christ. The project has links to a number of churches in Manchester and we encourage players who are interested in finding out more about the Christian faith, or who have made a commitment, to attend one, usually alongside one of our team. Our partners at City Mission have now taken this model to other boroughs across Manchester establishing Street Soccer in Bolton and Salford with others in the pipeline.
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