Greater Manchester comes together for first Cost of Living Summit

Leaders from community organisations, businesses, charities and the public sector came together in central Manchester for the city-region’s first Cost of Living Summit, hosted by Greater Manchester Mayor Bev Craig.

The summit culminated in a landmark new commitment to take further action to make life more affordable for local people this winter, which received pledges of support from major employers in the city-region, as well as utilities and financial services providers.

New research from Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) shows that two thirds of Greater Manchester residents (67%) say that their cost of living has increased in the past month. Fewer than half of local people (45%) expect to be able to put any money into savings over the next 12 months, while around 1 in 3 are buying less food (36%) and using less fuel (31%) to counter rising costs.

A range of initial measures have been agreed to help people in all parts of the city region, with the Mayor also encouraging organisations to sign up to a new Greater Manchester Cost of Living Commitment to go even further. These include GMCA working with partners in the banking sector on a 12-month pilot to see banking and financial advice return to local high streets.

Business pledges include a commitment from Amazon to increase its donations to Multibank Northwest: household products donated will be distributed to individuals and families experiencing financial hardship across the region in time for Christmas. Octopus Energy will also work with GMCA to reduce energy bills, including through its Tenant Power tariff and its Powerpack Vehicle-to-Grid EV charging tariff.

The summit also highlighted existing support in the city-region, such as the GM Databank, which provides mobile data, texts and minutes to low income residents struggling with digital connectivity, and work being done by local councils, such as subsidised school holiday activities, warm hubs, and other targeted support for people in crisis.

Alongside pledges secured at the summit, the Mayor has also committed to deliver a longer-term Greater Manchester Essentials Guarantee to help all residents have the basic foundations of a good life. She will also work with partner organisations on a new Cost of Living Commitment that will “bring real help to families in need this winter and beyond.”