“It’s definitely hard to miss!”, laughed 25-year-old Maye, a pharmacist from Edinburgh, and one of Our Future Health’s latest volunteers.  

Maye wasn’t alone in her observation as she attended an appointment at our first pop-up clinic – a splash of sunny yellow at Manchester’s Piccadilly Gardens on a grey January weekend. 

We’ve run mobile clinics since 2022, offering appointments in over 200 locations up and down the country. However, our new pop-up clinics represent an exciting new endeavour, as they allow people to join Our Future Health on the spot. Unlike our mobile clinics, appointments do not need to be booked ahead of time. 

The aim? To enable everyone to take part in our programme.  

“Feedback has shown us that people from under-represented groups, such as Black, Asian and minority ethnic communities, can face a number of barriers when it comes to participation – time being one of them,” says Anika Ladva, Head of Community Engagement at Our Future Health. 

“So, we’ve decided to take our clinics to these communities. By having some friendly faces on site to take people through the programme and process, and offering immediate appointments, we want to make joining our programme easier and more accessible for everyone.” 

And the people of Manchester were here for it. Over the three-day event, 104 people took the opportunity to sign up on the spot. Encouragingly, the response rate improved each day – so that, by the last day, 90% of available appointments were filled. 

Here’s what our volunteers and staff had to say about their experience at Manchester’s Piccadilly Gardens – and where you can find us next. 

‘This programme will be so important for public health’

30-year-old dentist Kexin was one of the first volunteers to join at our Piccadilly Gardens clinic.  

“When I stopped today to hear about Our Future Health, I knew immediately how important this programme could be in terms of public health – particularly for those of us from minority ethnic backgrounds,” she said. “It’s great that it’s focusing in on building a representative database for researchers.” 

Kexin was also impressed with the convenience of the clinic. “Volunteering today was very straightforward. For only 20 minutes of your time, the impact of Our Future Health could be huge. Having the clinic in a busy, vibrant area with a lot of foot fall like this is a great way to enable busy people to volunteer when it suits them, too.” 

Samuel, 45, lives locally. He joined Our Future Health after chatting with one of our team about the long-term benefits of the programme.  

“I love research,” he said. “I was once a biochemistry student myself, which is all about research, research, research! As soon as the staff here told me what this is all for, I joined.  

“I love research because I love discovering new things. It’d be brilliant if Our Future Health enables researchers to progress and make new discoveries about cancer, particularly prostate cancer, as it affects about one in four Black men.” 

‘It’s been wonderful to offer appointments on the spot’

Our Future Health Engagement Project Coordinator, Azrin Rahman, was one of the team working on the ground. 

“It’s been wonderful to be able to offer appointments on the spot at our very first pop-up clinic today,” said Azrin. “It’s bright, it’s yellow, it’s eye-catching, and it just breaks through this grey old day. People here seem happy to see us, and of course we are so happy to see them. 

“I think the positive response here has shown that this set-up appeals to a lot of the people we haven’t managed to engage previously. I can’t wait to see the impact of the other pop-up locations we have planned.” 

Anika echoes the sentiment. “I’ve seen some incredible engagement and enthusiasm from members of the public here. People were really pleased with the convenience of the pop-up clinic.  

“I’m so excited to roll out more of these clinics across different locations, to raise awareness and enable under-represented communities to get involved.” 

Our Events Coordinator, Jasmine Denton Fontaine, also spent her weekend helping at the clinic. 

“To the people of Manchester, it’s been amazing talking with you. Thank you for your time and for joining Our Future Health. We look forward to bringing you with us on our journey to fighting disease together and helping everyone live healthier lives for longer.”

Next stop…

If you didn’t catch us at Manchester’s Piccadilly Gardens, you can find our next walk-in clinics at the below locations: 

• 22 – 23 February: Muslim Shopping Festival Excel, London 

• 2 and 5 March: Pilgrim’s Way, East Ham, London  

• 19, 21 and 22 March: Deptford Market, London 

• 11 – 13 April: London Eid Festival Stratford Westfield, London 

There’s no need to book an appointment ahead of time for these clinics. Every adult living in the UK is eligible to join Our Future Health – you’ll just need to bring your mobile phone to create an account with us. 

So, pop by if you’re in the area, and our team there will help you take care of the rest.