Website launched to help people to organise charity gigs for drug and alcohol treatment
- Manchester social enterprise makes it possible for anyone to put on gigs
- Due to success of gigs over the past few months website will go live this week
- Money raised goes towards bursaries for rehabilitation centre
A Manchester-based social enterprise is launching a website enabling people to put on gigs to raise money for the Turn Up for Recovery movement.
The new movement encourages people to hold fundraising gigs with profits going towards abstinence-based recovery programmes for people with drug and alcohol problems.
Reason Digital, a Manchester based social enterprise, is one of the driving forces behind the initiative.
Reason Digital is currently building a new website for the movement to allow everyone, not just musicians, to organise gigs in support of the cause. The website will allow users to list an event and provide access to a gig pack containing posters, brand guidelines and example social media posts to ensure every gig is a success.
Turn up for Recovery started at Eric Clapton’s Crossroads Guitar Festival in Dallas in September and has since spread from LA to Manchester. Over the past few weeks, gigs have been put on to test the process. The most recent of which was organised by Reason Digital at the end of October, which took place at the The Peer Hat, in the Northern Quarter.
Reason Digital’s marketing apprentice, Amy Johnson, performed at the gig under her stage name amyidk.
Lucy Bushby, who helped organise the gig, said: “Amy was absolutely amazing. She has a few songs on Spotify and she writes all her own stuff and she has a really individual sound – she was incredible.
“She did five of her own songs and a couple of covers.”
Service desk manager, Karys Moffat, also performed in a duo with her friend Kevin, who call themselves Wonkypuss.
Lucy said: “They had funny strange songs about everyday things. Kevin was dancing around all over the stage. He was so energetic, he got the crowd going and they were so into it.”
Donations were asked for tickets and combined with cash donations on the night they managed to raise £500.
Turn Up for Recovery was set up by Melia Clapton, who is a trustee of the Crossroads Centre in Antigua. Crossroads Centre is a residential centre where people from all over the world can go to rehabilitate from alcohol and drug use using a 12 step programme. Proceeds from the fundraising gigs go towards funding subsidised places at the Centre with the hope that as the movement grows, they will be able to support multiple centres across the world.
Lucy said: “We’re really pleased to be working with Turn Up For Recovery and it’s been fantastic see the movement go from an idea to a reality. Hopefully, this is just the start!”
The website will fully launch in January.
Reason Digital specialise in helping charities do amazing things with digital. They have worked with hundreds of charities such as CLIC Sergeant, NSPCC and Age UK to bring their life-changing services online.