Have you heard about Umbro Industries, but not exactly sure what you could do with the money? Here’s what two of our previous winners have been doing since they won a slice of cash to get their ideas in gear…

Bangers & Fash

Student gang Bangers & Fash won £3,000 in November’s Umbro Industries, to go towards a special club night/fashion show/village fete that they were wanting to host. Last month, their ideas sprang into life at The Deaf Institute in Manchester, where they took over all three floors of the venue for the evening, with DJs, bands, a catwalk show and some games such as Bat The Rat and a tombola! As you can see in the photos here, expertly shot by Daniel Glaze, the night was a big success, with The Deaf Institute packed to the rafters.

With the success of the evening, Bangers & Fash are now looking to host more events in and around Manchester, while they continue to host events in Nottingham as well.

Mike Garry

Well known around Manchester for his innovative approach to poetry, Mike Garry won £7,000 from Umbro Industries in November. Mike is using the money to create a book of poetry all about football, which will all be written by young people from in and around Manchester. Mike is currently staging workshops around the city with children from all backgrounds, using football as a way to get them interested in poetry and reading.

I recently travelled to Longsight Library to see Mike in action, and the response he got from the small group pictured with him here was fantastic. Speaking to the young lads, they mentioned that they previously thought that poetry was boring, but Mike’s enthusiasm and his way with words had got them interested. The ideas that they’d come up with after just five weeks of workshops were really impressive, and we can’t wait to see the end product!

That’s just two of the ideas that have come to light thanks to Umbro Industries – we’ve also funded plenty of other ideas that are building up towards some exciting events around Manchester. If you think you’ve got a great idea, but need some cash to get it kicked off, you can submit it to Umbro Industries now – get them down before the deadline of April 22nd!