Finding hope in a time of tension

It has been a long, hot and difficult summer for the UK. Coming back from holidays and checking back in with people running Warm Welcome Spaces across the country, it’s clear that there has been a distinct rising of tension. Unrest related to asylum hotels and a relentless media focus on this issue has been followed by demonstrative displays of English/British flags - for some a symbol of patriotism and pride but for others experienced as a tool of ‘othering’ and intimidation. Tommy Robinson’s rally attracted more than 100,000 people and saw figures like Elon Musk declare to the crowds that “whether you choose violence or not, violence is coming to you.”

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Community Spaces and those who run them are not immune to the impact of all of this - in fact in many ways they are right at the epicentre of how these national events and changes play out in people’s everyday lives. Many Warm Welcome Spaces hosts are having to think afresh about how to make their places genuinely welcoming for everyone. Lots are thinking about how to hold space for difficult conversations and disagreeing well. Some are worried about keeping their staff, volunteers and guests safe.

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We often talk about Warm Welcome as a ‘Chain of Hope’ stretching across the country, with 5,400 and counting community spaces of every shape and size serving their communities. What does hope look like at a time like this? For us it is found in places like Peace of Mind, a refugee-led charity who are helping new arrivals build friendships with those who have called the North East of England home for generations. It’s also found in places like Ebe Church in Bristol who are hosting Peace Feasts that bring people together from vastly different backgrounds around food and music.

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What these incredible Spaces remind us is there is no substitute for in-person encounters between people of different backgrounds, and that we must hold on fiercely to the belief that when people see each other for who they really are - human beings just like them with families and hopes and dreams and fears - then differences of race and culture and religion and immigration status fade away.

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They also remind us that physical spaces run by courageous community leaders are not a nice to have in 2025. Instead they are utterly vital to our ability to hold together as a diverse country in the face of immense and powerful forces that seek to fragment and divide us. That should cause all those with resource - whether government or philanthropy or corporates - to consider afresh how they can be part of enabling these spaces and leaders to flourish in the months and years ahead.

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Here at Warm Welcome we are actively looking for new partners and resources to help our Spaces navigate these difficult times. So if you think you’ve got something that might help those at the coalface forge a path forward for all of us, do get in touch! info@warmwelcome.uk