How afternoon tea has helped bring communities together

Just 11 miles separate the small village of Skeffington from the bustling streets of Leicester's Golden Mile.

Despite the short distance, many residents have had little opportunity to meet.

Now, reciprocal invitations for afternoon tea have helped to build new friendships as part of an exchange scheme connecting rural Leicestershire churches to Hindu, Muslim and Sikh communities in the city.

The scheme is organised by the St Philip's Centre, which was set up 20 years ago to build bridges between communities in Leicestershire.

Reverend Tom Wilson, director of the centre, said that has become more challenging as people have lost the habit of socialising and mixing with people they do not know.

He added: "We've learned as a society to exist in small bubbles, mixing that happened naturally doesn't happen anymore without a bit of encouragement and hand-holding because people are a bit scared of difference.

"It's maybe the fear of causing offence that means people aren't prepared to take the risk of getting to know someone."

During the latest round of exchanges, villagers in Skeffington made egg-free cakes for Hindu visitors who marvelled at the church's medieval architecture.

Kirti Savjani described their welcome as "a wonderful experience".

Church warden Barbara Preston, who is in her 80s, chuckled as she heard their return visit would involve a traditional Gujarati Garba dance.

"I don't know how, I don't think I will with my stick," she added.

On the group's return visit to Belgrave Library, traditional Gujarati snacks were shared before the circular Garba dance took place, which Barbara joined in with.

Chai and Chat organiser, Nirmala Bhojani, added their new friends were welcome to celebrate Diwali and Christmas with them.

Two miles away, villagers at Tugby church welcomed a group of Bengali women from Highfields.

The visitors were all Muslim women wearing hijabs, and as they chatted and laughed beside stained-glass windows, Majeda Dewan Islam said they soon found everyday things they had in common.

"A few people failing at maths, also the allotment - we love pulling out weeds, it's so therapeutic," she added.

Five days later, the villagers from Tugby had a return invitation to a Bengali Bortha Party in Highfields, where they tried on sarees before joining a game of walking football.

The surroundings were familiar to the group from Tugby, as their hosts use an Anglican church as their base.

St Peter's offers its facilities to all communities in Highfields, with its hall being ideal for Majeda's fitness classes.

"I might be the only person in the country that has a set of keys for a church and a mosque," Majeda said.

"It just shows how people in Leicester are working together and we trust each other to look after our places of worship".

Rev Wilson, from the centre, said he accepted that many people were concerned about how rapidly the country is changing and have no interest in closer ties.

But he believes 'fear-mongering' and divisive rhetoric has fuelled distorted assumptions.

"We used to go to rural churches and ask what the Muslim population in Britain was," he said.

"They vastly overestimated, so no wonder people are scared, because they think the country's changing faster than they can cope with".

He hopes creating a bond between these small groups can make a wider impact.

"All we've been doing is giving people the opportunity to make friends and meet each other, and I think that just gives you a more positive view about life and about the country.

"You hope they talk to their friends and people who are more sceptical," he added.

Cathryn Parsons, who organised the exchange programme, is now planning a five-a-side ladies football tournament to introduce more groups to each other.

"Any time you put people together they find that there's less difference," she added.

"If people talk they find out they're the same underneath everything.

"But unless you actually meet someone that's different to you, how do you know that?".

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