# Manchester (Somali diaspora)

> Somalis in Manchester and Moss Side: Census 2021 counts by ward, arrivals since the 1990s, Claremont Road businesses, councillors, charities and ties home.

Source page: https://calankii.com/en/diaspora/manchester/
Last checked: 2026-11-12
Publisher: Calankii (https://calankii.com)

Manchester's Somali community is centred on Moss Side, and most of it arrived as refugees from the 1990s onward ([Big Issue, 6 September 2024](https://bigissue.com/?p=237192)). Census 2021 counted 7,653 people who wrote "Somali" or "Somalilander", 1.4% of the city ([Nomis, Census 2021 TS022](https://www.nomisweb.co.uk/api/v01/dataset/NM_2095_1.data.csv?date=latest&geography=TYPE154&c2021_ethnic_288=0,63,64,85,276,277&measures=20100)).

## How many Somalis live in Manchester?

The census gives several counts:

- **Somali or Somalilander write-ins:** 7,653 of 551,929 residents, of whom 836 wrote "Somalilander" ([Nomis, TS022](https://www.nomisweb.co.uk/api/v01/dataset/NM_2095_1.data.csv?date=latest&geography=TYPE154&c2021_ethnic_288=0,63,64,85,276,277&measures=20100)).
- **ONS share:** Manchester holds 4.0% of the 176,645 people in England and Wales who identified as Somali ([ONS, 4 October 2023](https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/culturalidentity/ethnicity/articles/somalipopulationsenglandandwales/census2021)).
- **Born in Somalia:** 4,272 ([Nomis, Census 2021 TS012](https://www.nomisweb.co.uk/api/v01/dataset/NM_2032_1.data.csv?date=latest&geography=TYPE154&c2021_cob_58=26&measures=20100)).
- **Main language Somali:** 2,415 residents aged 3 and over ([Nomis, Census 2021 TS024](https://www.nomisweb.co.uk/api/v01/dataset/NM_2043_1.data.csv?date=latest&geography=E08000003&measures=20100)).

Nearby towns add more. Bolton counted 2,077 Somali or Somalilander residents, with 921 in Rumworth ward ([Nomis, TS022](https://www.nomisweb.co.uk/api/v01/dataset/NM_2095_1.data.csv?date=latest&geography=TYPE154&c2021_ethnic_288=0,63,64,85,276,277&measures=20100); [Nomis, wards](https://www.nomisweb.co.uk/api/v01/dataset/NM_2095_1.data.csv?date=latest&geography=TYPE153&c2021_ethnic_288=63,64,85,276,277&measures=20100)).

## Where in Manchester do Somalis live?

Census 2021 ward counts, Somali and Somalilander together ([Nomis, TS022 by ward](https://www.nomisweb.co.uk/api/v01/dataset/NM_2095_1.data.csv?date=latest&geography=E08000003TYPE153&c2021_ethnic_288=63,64,85,276,277&measures=20100)):

- **Moss Side:** 2,797, the most of any ward in England and Wales
- **Ardwick:** 753
- **Hulme:** 710
- **Whalley Range:** 661
- **Fallowfield:** 470
- **Cheetham:** 369
- **Longsight:** 321

Claremont Road is Moss Side's main shopping street ([VICE, 7 January 2019](https://www.vice.com/en/article/how-manchesters-somali-community-helped-to-transform-moss-side)). Shops on Claremont and Princess Roads sell prayer rugs and money transfers, and advertise flights to Nairobi, Hargeisa and Mogadishu ([Hyphen, 15 December 2022](https://hyphenonline.com/2022/12/15/moss-side-from-no-go-zone-to-culinary-hotspot/)).

## How did Somalis come to Manchester?

**Before 1991.** Somali seamen settled in British ports from the 19th century, and some moved inland when shipping work declined; see [The first Somalis abroad](/en/diaspora/somali-seamen-and-early-migrants/). Plaza Cafe on Upper Brook Street, Longsight, ran from the 1970s to 1990 and was one of Manchester's first Somali-owned businesses ([Hyphen, 2022](https://hyphenonline.com/2022/12/15/moss-side-from-no-go-zone-to-culinary-hotspot/)).

**Refugees, 1990s.** After war began in Somalia, about 6,000 Somali refugees settled in Manchester, many in Moss Side ([Big Issue, 2024](https://bigissue.com/?p=237192)). In the early 1990s, eight refugee community groups, one of them Somali, founded the Manchester Refugee Support Network ([Archives Hub](https://archiveshub.ac.uk/search/archives/bbff0fed-75da-3ca3-b97c-08f830e49f3b)).

**Onward from Europe, 2000s.** Over half of Manchester's Somalia-born residents arrived in 2001 to 2010 ([ONS Census 2021, year of arrival, Manchester](https://api.beta.ons.gov.uk/v1/population-types/UR/census-observations?area-type=ltla,E08000003&dimensions=country_of_birth_60a,year_arrival_uk)):

- Before 1981: 24
- 1981 to 1990: 146
- 1991 to 2000: 1,086
- 2001 to 2010: 2,266
- 2011 to 2021: 752

Some came after years in mainland Europe. One Moss Side musician's family fled to Denmark during the war, and he came to the UK in 2001 ([VICE, 2019](https://www.vice.com/en/article/how-manchesters-somali-community-helped-to-transform-moss-side)). In 2021, 426 of Manchester's Somalia-born residents held a passport from a smaller EU country ([ONS Census 2021, passports held, Manchester](https://api.beta.ons.gov.uk/v1/population-types/UR/census-observations?area-type=ltla,E08000003&dimensions=country_of_birth_60a,passports_all_27a)). See [Leicester](/en/diaspora/leicester/) for this onward move.

## Do Somalis in Manchester have work?

No Manchester-only Somali employment rate has been published. Across England and Wales in 2021, 10.3% of Somalis aged 16 to 64 were unemployed, against 4.4% overall ([ONS, 2023](https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/culturalidentity/ethnicity/articles/somalipopulationsenglandandwales/census2021)).

Business is visible. Two people behind a 2019 Somali heritage exhibition estimated that about 70% of Claremont Road businesses were Somali-owned ([VICE, 2019](https://www.vice.com/en/article/how-manchesters-somali-community-helped-to-transform-moss-side)). Somali cafés and restaurants have helped turn Moss Side into a food destination ([Hyphen, 2022](https://hyphenonline.com/2022/12/15/moss-side-from-no-go-zone-to-culinary-hotspot/)).

Papers are mostly settled. In 2021, 3,350 of 4,272 Somalia-born residents held a UK passport, and 300 held none ([ONS Census 2021, passports held, Manchester](https://api.beta.ons.gov.uk/v1/population-types/UR/census-observations?area-type=ltla,E08000003&dimensions=country_of_birth_60a,passports_all_27a)). See [Refugee papers and status](/en/diaspora/refugee-papers-and-status/).

## Who speaks for Somalis in Manchester?

**Elected office.** Councillor Mahadi Hussein Sharif Mahamed (Labour) has represented Moss Side since May 2019, with a term to May 2027 ([Manchester City Council](https://democracy.manchester.gov.uk/mgUserInfo.aspx?UID=236)). The Big Issue describes him as Manchester's first Somali councillor ([Big Issue, 2024](https://bigissue.com/?p=237192)).

**Charities.**

- **Somali Adult Social Care Agency (SASCA)** (charity 1143949), on Princess Road, Moss Side, supports Somali elders with welfare advice, interpreting and hospital visits ([Charity Commission](https://register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk/en/charity-search/-/charity-details/5009956/full-print)). Founded in 2007, it sees 350 to 400 people a week, its trustees told the Big Issue ([Big Issue, 2024](https://bigissue.com/?p=237192)).
- **Greater Manchester Somali Community Association** (charity 1170841) acts as an umbrella for Somali groups and plans a Somali youth centre ([Charity Commission](https://register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk/en/charity-search/-/charity-details/5087424/full-print)).

**Culture.** "See My Dunya", a 2019 film and photography exhibition on Manchester's Somali community, showed at HOME and Central Library ([VICE, 2019](https://www.vice.com/en/article/how-manchesters-somali-community-helped-to-transform-moss-side)).

## What do Somalis in Manchester face now?

- **2024, funding:** SASCA faced closure after the city council cut its core funding, then won a £217,000 National Lottery grant for three years ([Big Issue, 2024](https://bigissue.com/?p=237192)).
- **2024, calm:** the Big Issue credited strong community organising, begun when Somali refugees arrived in the 1990s, for Moss Side's calm during unrest that summer ([Big Issue, 2024](https://bigissue.com/?p=237192)).
- **2025 to 2026, small groups:** the umbrella association reported income of £5,594 for the year to June 2025 and filed late ([Charity Commission](https://register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk/en/charity-search/-/charity-details/5087424/full-print)).
- **Housing, 2021:** 58.8% of Somali households in England and Wales were overcrowded, and 72.0% rented social housing ([ONS, 2023](https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/culturalidentity/ethnicity/articles/somalipopulationsenglandandwales/census2021)).

## How is Manchester tied to home?

Moss Side shops sell flights to Hargeisa and Mogadishu and offer money-transfer services ([Hyphen, 2022](https://hyphenonline.com/2022/12/15/moss-side-from-no-go-zone-to-culinary-hotspot/)). Somali was the main language of 2,415 residents in 2021 ([Nomis, TS024](https://www.nomisweb.co.uk/api/v01/dataset/NM_2043_1.data.csv?date=latest&geography=E08000003&measures=20100)). For money sent home, see [Life after leaving](/en/diaspora/life-after-leaving/).

## Related pages

- [United Kingdom (Somali diaspora)](/en/diaspora/united-kingdom/)
- [Other UK cities (Somali diaspora)](/en/diaspora/uk-other-cities/)
- [Leicester (Somali diaspora)](/en/diaspora/leicester/)
- [Sheffield (Somali diaspora)](/en/diaspora/sheffield/)
- [Liverpool (Somali diaspora)](/en/diaspora/liverpool/)
- [Birmingham (Somali diaspora)](/en/diaspora/birmingham/)
- [Why and how Somalis left](/en/diaspora/why-and-how-somalis-left/)

## Sources

1. ONS via Nomis. Census 2021 TS022, Ethnic group (detailed), local authorities, all wards and Manchester wards. [nomisweb.co.uk](https://www.nomisweb.co.uk/api/v01/dataset/NM_2095_1.data.csv?date=latest&geography=TYPE154&c2021_ethnic_288=0,63,64,85,276,277&measures=20100) · [all wards](https://www.nomisweb.co.uk/api/v01/dataset/NM_2095_1.data.csv?date=latest&geography=TYPE153&c2021_ethnic_288=63,64,85,276,277&measures=20100) · [Manchester wards](https://www.nomisweb.co.uk/api/v01/dataset/NM_2095_1.data.csv?date=latest&geography=E08000003TYPE153&c2021_ethnic_288=63,64,85,276,277&measures=20100). Checked 2026-11-12.
2. ONS via Nomis. Census 2021 TS012, Country of birth: Somalia. [nomisweb.co.uk](https://www.nomisweb.co.uk/api/v01/dataset/NM_2032_1.data.csv?date=latest&geography=TYPE154&c2021_cob_58=26&measures=20100). Checked 2026-11-12.
3. ONS via Nomis. Census 2021 TS024, Main language (detailed), Manchester. [nomisweb.co.uk](https://www.nomisweb.co.uk/api/v01/dataset/NM_2043_1.data.csv?date=latest&geography=E08000003&measures=20100). Checked 2026-11-12.
4. ONS. Census 2021 custom datasets: Somalia-born residents of Manchester by year of arrival and by passports held. [Year of arrival](https://api.beta.ons.gov.uk/v1/population-types/UR/census-observations?area-type=ltla,E08000003&dimensions=country_of_birth_60a,year_arrival_uk) · [Passports](https://api.beta.ons.gov.uk/v1/population-types/UR/census-observations?area-type=ltla,E08000003&dimensions=country_of_birth_60a,passports_all_27a). Checked 2026-11-12.
5. Office for National Statistics. "Somali populations, England and Wales: Census 2021." 4 October 2023. [ons.gov.uk](https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/culturalidentity/ethnicity/articles/somalipopulationsenglandandwales/census2021). Checked 2026-11-12.
6. Big Issue. "Riots are not inevitable – just ask the people of Manchester's Moss Side." 6 September 2024. [bigissue.com](https://bigissue.com/?p=237192). Checked 2026-11-12.
7. VICE. "How Manchester's Somali community helped to transform Moss Side." 7 January 2019. [vice.com](https://www.vice.com/en/article/how-manchesters-somali-community-helped-to-transform-moss-side). Checked 2026-11-12.
8. Hyphen. "Moss Side — from no-go zone to culinary hotspot." 15 December 2022. [hyphenonline.com](https://hyphenonline.com/2022/12/15/moss-side-from-no-go-zone-to-culinary-hotspot/). Checked 2026-11-12.
9. Archives Hub. "Manchester Refugee Support Network archive" (catalogue description). [archiveshub.ac.uk](https://archiveshub.ac.uk/search/archives/bbff0fed-75da-3ca3-b97c-08f830e49f3b). Checked 2026-11-12.
10. Manchester City Council. "Councillor Mahadi Hussein Sharif Mahamed" (member profile). [democracy.manchester.gov.uk](https://democracy.manchester.gov.uk/mgUserInfo.aspx?UID=236). Checked 2026-11-12.
11. Charity Commission for England and Wales. Somali Adult Social Care Agency, charity 1143949. [register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk](https://register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk/en/charity-search/-/charity-details/5009956/full-print). Checked 2026-11-12.
12. Charity Commission for England and Wales. Greater Manchester Somali Community Association, charity 1170841. [register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk](https://register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk/en/charity-search/-/charity-details/5087424/full-print). Checked 2026-11-12.

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