These are some examples of activites we have run in the past and may run again in the future - depending on demand.

The aim of the art workshop is to experiment with different styles of art in order to increase people's skills and confidence.  People can use watercolour, charcoal, ink and pastels.  They have also tried glass painting, mosaic and printing.  Weekly workshops in the Centre are supplemented with an annual residential in the Peak District.

People are able to build up a portfolio which can be entered for a nationally recognised arts-based qualfication through the Open College Network.

Each year the art group stages a public exhibition where they display their work to a wider audience, and where they can sell their work if they choose.

In addition, each year the group enter the "Inspired By..." competition run by the V&A and Manchester Art Gallery.  This involves the group visiting the gallery and producing a piece of work which has been inspired by what they have seen.  Twice a member of the group has been a runner up in the competition.

Here are some examples of their work:

The aim of the cookery sessions is to encourage people to cook for themselves and to eat a more healthy diet. We recognise that many people living in temporary accommodation or living alone have neither the motivation nor facilities to cook complicated meals. Therefore, everything we do can either be cooked quickly in the microwave or in one pan on one ring. We may not be exactly cordon bleu but we have become quite adventurous. It's amazing how recipes can be adapted with a little imagination – would you have thought of apple crumble cooked in a frying pan or have attempted Christmas dinner for 15 (including pudding) with only 4 electric rings and a microwave!

Everyone attending the cookery sessions receives a cookery book of the recipes we have cooked – so they can easily try them again at home. We also take photos of people cooking and of their finished dishes to provide personal illustrations for their cookery book. They also receive a qualification if they attend regularly. We have run courses on microwave cookery, one pan cookery, nutrition and an international (one pan) cookery course.

We have run regular photography courses at the Booth Centre.  We display people's photos on a big screen that plays continually during our drop-ins, so people can enjoy looking at each others work.  In 1999 we staged a large exhibition at the Pumphouse People's History Museum and in 2007 we put on an exhibition at Urbis.  The photography group have also produced various calendars  and booklets of their work.  We have also run several photography residentials,  which have enabled people to take photos of sea and mountains rather than just  the Manchester and Salford cityscape.  They enjoy learning to use the cameras,  wandering around taking photos and manipulating the images on the computer.

Pottery workshops at the Centre are run by Wendy Andrew, an experience potter.  People learn how to make slab, coil and pinch pots and how to decorate and finish their work to a high standard.  We also have a wheel, so people can have fun learning how to throw.  If people attend regularly they can gain a nationally recognised qualification.  People often make useful pots which they take home, helping to make the rooms in their hostels or their new flats more homely.  We also display pots at the Centre and have put pots into various exhibitions, including one in 2009 at the Manchester Central Library.

Once people have got a taste for pottery they can move on to work with the Manchester Ceramics Enterprise, a social enterprise for potters who have a history of homelessness.  They have a fantastic studio in Hulme, where people have all the facilities to really develop their skills.  You can buy their work at the Manchester Cathedral visitor centre shop and other high quality outlets around the city.  You can see more about them on their website at http://www.manchesterceramics.org.uk 

Our conservation work started in 2002 when we worked in Blackley Forest  thinning trees, planting a wild flower meadow, making a board walk and making and putting up bird boxes.  In 2004 the Centre won a Manchester City Coucil award for our Contribution to the Environment.

In 2006 we took part in the BBC Springwatch campaign to promote wildlife and biodiversity in cities, and in 2007 were awarded a Biodiversity Hot Spot award.

We launched our own gardening social enterprise which then was taken on by some of our trainees as a small business, creating full time work.  Our gardeners also took part in the Tatton Park Garden Festival and won a bronze medal for their garden.