On Monday, Welcome Space was filled with warmth, laughter and the smell of amazing food as we shared our Christmas meal together. Our wonderful cooks fed over 50 people with a delicious spread of chicken curry, vegetarian curry and roast chicken — and every plate was enjoyed!

The afternoon brought together people from the sheltered housing next door, the Monday yoga class upstairs, members of the church, regular guests of Welcome Space, the lady who cleans the church, someone visiting back from Birmingham, and others who have found us through seeking help from Citizens Advice. One person summed it up perfectly afterwards, saying how special it was to bring so many different groups together — a real community meal.

A particularly moving moment came when Kiran sang Hark the Herald Angels in Marathi, an Indian language spoken in Bombay. She shared how comforting it was to discover this familiar carol when she moved from India to Iran many years ago and attended an Anglican church there — and how surprised she was to learn that the carol was originally written in English. It was a beautiful reminder of how music can connect us across cultures and countries.

Everyone enjoyed the food, the atmosphere, and most of all the sense of togetherness. Thank you to everyone who came, cooked, shared stories, and helped make this such a joyful celebration of community.