Goodbye from richard

“After nearly 7 years, this week marks my last as CEO of Manchester Youth Zone before I hand over the reins.

Throughout that time, I have seen; MYZ become embraced by the city and communities it serves, commitment I could never have imagined, and recognition of our work that I can’t even put in to words (yes it feels good to say my last role prior to retirement was at the North West Charity of the Year!).

How we work in partnership has been transformed by so many people and partners. I am really proud that how we work together to improve the lives of families and young people is now seen as an exemplar across Manchester and further.

I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again – there is always more to be done. New challenges present themselves every day, and there will always be more young people that need our support – the past year has certainly proved these to be true.

Now, as we come out of the pandemic and we have a better understanding than ever on how we can best serve our young people and families and the local community, it seems the perfect time for me to step back and let new thinking take over.

From members to parents, supporters to board members, staff to volunteers, voluntary and statutory partners and any one and everything who has been a part of the MYZmagic these past years – I just want to say, thank you! Thank you for believing in me, thank you for believing in the cause, but most of all, thank you for believing in young people.”

Richard Marsh