Youth Ambassador and Mayor of the West Midlands Andy Street open MyBnk’s new site in Birmingham
On Tuesday 10th January we were very proud to launch The Money House and MyBnk Midlands in Digbeth, Birmingham at an event for local stakeholders.
The new hub will help young people in the Midlands manage their money and avoid homelessness.
The building was officially opened by Andy Street, Mayor of the West Midlands, and a MyBnk Midlands Youth Ambassador. Rob Perrins, Chief Executive of Berkeley Group, one of our key funders, gave a speech as well as Guy Rigden, MyBnk CEO and Sally McLachlan, Regional Partnership Manager for the Midlands.
Guests, including local delivery partners, funders and young people, explored the building and took part in activities to give them a flavour of some of the programmes we run.
The team are currently running MyBnk’s The Money House homelessness prevention programme and independent living course Money Works for young people in the region. They will soon be offering a virtual version of The Money House and Money Twist for 16-18 year olds.
Our aim is to see The Money House and Money Works courses running at full capacity, reaching more than 700 young adults a year through over 1,000 hours of training and interaction and MyBnk embedded into the youth offering across the region.
Tackling homelessness and building positive money habits cannot be done alone; working in partnership is vital to solve these complex issues and drive systemic change. A huge thank you to everyone who has made MyBnk Midlands a reality, including delivery partners, young people and funders Berkeley Foundation, JP Morgan, SGN, The Quilter Foundation, Abrdn, Compare the Market, Aviva Foundation and Hymans Roberston.
To find out more about our work in Birmingham, please contact Sally at sally.mclachlan@mybnk.org
Andy Street with a MyBnk Midlands young ambassadorAndy Street, Mayor of the West Midlands said:
““It’s great to be able to open this new West Midlands hub. Designing out homelessness is one of my key priorities as Mayor and supporting people to manage their money effectively plays an important part in that – building the knowledge and resilience to transition into independent living with confidence. This service is a wonderful addition to our region and I look forward to seeing the positive impact it has here in the months and years ahead.”
Sally McLachlan, Regional Partnership Manager, Midlands, said:
“We’re so excited to expand MyBnk’s work to the Midlands. This region has a high proportion of youth unemployment and young people leaving the care system, so the need for a project like this is clear. Our first sessions have received great feedback from participants, and we can’t wait to welcome more young people to our new site and bring our programmes to schools and youth organisations”.
The Money House Birmingham participants said:
“Overwhelming topics, such as debt, were simplified into something a lot less scary. I now feel much more comfortable with how to deal with them in the future.”
“I enjoyed the feeling of comfort whilst you’re learning – it’s not a pressured environment or strict; you’re able to relax.”
