GORTON Community plaque has been unveiled this Saturday in tribute to the victims of the attack at Manchester Arena.

A local member of Gorton Community Centre’s Ladies Pensioner Group has raised money for the plaque which pays tribute to all the people who died and all the people injured in the Manchester Arena bombing.

Rose Berrington, 70, from the Gorton area came up with the idea for the plaque after several successful fundraising efforts.

The tribute in St Ann's Square
The tribute in St Ann’s Square

She said: “The people of Gorton have backed me in all the charity work I do and I just thought it would be nice to have a plaque in the garden to remember the people who died and who were injured.

“The arena appeal had stopped the money, that is why I didn’t send it there so I asked the community where they would like the money to go and they suggested that, so that is where the money is going.”

The plaque, reads: ‘In memory of those who died, and those who were injured in the Manchester Arena bombing’, and is located on the gates of Gorton Community Centre. 

Since it was unveiled on the 7th of  October there have been several people come and see the plaque, to pay their respects to the 22 people that died on 22nd of May 2017.

“People do come and see it, they know the plaque is here and it is there for anyone to see as a reminder of the tragedy in Manchester,” explained Rose.

“The local community as well of Manchester were shocked and affected by what happened at the Arena. The community centre is a well used hub and the plaque will be a constant reminder of what happened on that evening. It will also show as to the strength of Manchester people to rally together in times of adversary”, said Councillor John Hughes for Gorton North.

As well as the plaque, Rose has also been making other ‘Manchester bee’ tributes based on a recommendation from someone in the community, including crochet flowers with bees in the middle of them and plaques with bees on that you can place on your bag or purse.

So far Rose has raised £350 from her fundraising efforts and plans to give £100 to St. Johns Ambulance, £50 to Gorton Visual Arts for a mosaic of a bee and £200 to Manchester Children’s charity.

Allan Grafton, the Chairman of Gorton events committee and a source for the MEN said: “She’s a diamond for charities. It’s absolutely fantastic that we have got that kind of a person in our group running fundraising events throughout the year.”

For more information on how you can donate to the victims of the attack check the website.

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