Marchesing – Roots & Routes – A cultural wave

Challenge: Manchester: How can cultural activities be promoted among minority communities?

Target Group: Vulnerable Communities

The Roots and Routes pilot focused on improving cultural and civic participation among the Bangladeshi community in the city of Manchester by developing a web platform that aggregates local event information and translates it into Bangla. The objective was to reduce language barriers and increase access to relevant activities within the city.

Co-creation with the Cultural team of the city of Manchester was central to the process. Following an initial research phase, the project team engaged in regular biweekly online meetings and conducted in-person workshops in Manchester during months 3 and 6. These sessions involved community members and local organisations, helping to define the platform’s features, language strategy, and content structure. Approximately 58 people were involved, with approximately 40 being considered representative of the target group. The approach ensured that the platform addressed real needs and was culturally and technically accessible.

The final product is a fully functional platform that allows organisations to easily share events, which are then automatically processed and translated for Bangla-speaking users. Testing with local users confirmed the platform’s usability and relevance, particularly within the Longsight neighbourhood.

Looking ahead, the team plans to extend the model to other communities and cities, add new language options, and further develop the interface to increase adoption and engagement. The pilot demonstrated the potential of hyper-local, language-aware platforms to foster inclusion.

Solution availability: https://webapp-rootsroutes-test-fab5e5fkbjgje9aj.westeurope-01.azurewebsites.net/en