THE inspiration for East Meets West, a group that brings together women of different ethnicities and faiths in Lancashire, occurred in a car park.
Liz Bagley noticed that, in the wake of the 9/11 attacks, the Gujarati women who had once smiled back at her as they went about their daily routine, had ceased to meet her eye.
Against a backdrop of rising Islamophobia, she approached a primary school to seek an introduction to the community. It led to a meeting with Ruksana Munshi and the formation in 2006 of East Meets West, which began with cooking sessions in the priory hall at Lancaster Priory.
Twenty years later, much has changed, but food remains central to the group. This week, Hilary Hopwood, co-chair from 2012 to 2024, described a table “groaning” with contributions from Muslim guests at an anniversary celebration at the Priory on Sunday.
Alongside the Priory congregation were 15 women, mostly Muslim, who went forward to receive a blessing. “The queue for cake and tea never seemed to disappear,” Mrs Hopwood said. “There was lots of mingling, mixing, and conversation. It was just lovely.”
Present, too, were a couple who worship at the Priory and the Iranian woman whom they visit regularly as part of the group’s Across the Generations project, set up after a group member, a refugee working as a clinical support worker at a hospital, noticed how many elderly people had no visitors.
Mrs Hopwood, a former language teacher, has been involved in the group from the start. Its first decade brought in Gujarati women, who first came to Lancashire in large numbers in the 1960s in response to the government’s call for labour. After 2016, growing numbers of asylum-seekers and refugees came to the area, prompting the group to extend its welcome. A schedule of weekly lunches began, and Lancaster Baptist Church offering facilities for free.
Lancaster has a largely white British population — 93.1 per cent compared with 81 per cent in England. Most identify as Christian or of no religion, while Muslims make up 1.9 per cent. The group focuses on offering a “safe and happy space”, but Mrs Hopwood has noticed change in the social climate. One Muslim member of the group received racist abuse at work.
Lancaster was “on the whole, very friendly and welcoming”, with a strong Stand Up to Racism presence, Mrs Hopwood said. East Meets West is a partner of Refugee Advocacy Information and Support, Lancaster, which reports that Lancaster has about 150 refugees and their families with leave to remain. Around 240 asylum-seekers arrived in 2024-25. Most of the clients of the support service are men from Iran, Sudan, and Afghanistan.
East Meets West brings together about 30 women every week at the Baptist church, where some bring their babies and toddlers. Chairs are placed in a circle, a soft ball is tossed around, and each person who catches it gives their name and country of origin. Every week, a member is given £50 to provide lunch for the group.
Last week, it was announced that Lancashire County Council, led by Reform UK since last year, could become the first UK council to withdraw from the Government’s refugee-resettlement scheme. East Meets West is also having to look elsewhere for funding for its Generations project.
A lack of encounter was “the root of the problem” in society, Mrs Hopwood said. “My whole passion has been to bring groups together who would not otherwise meet and it is relatively easy to do that,” she continued. “It makes all the difference to actually know someone and their family and realise how much they are bringing. Our experience of people coming here is wholly positive.”
She raised concern about rhetoric from the party Restore Britain, which “makes it sound like everyone who comes here is invading us and is a criminal who wants to harm us”.
Newcomers who express interest but wariness about giving up too much time make Mrs Hopwood smile, she said. “We know, the minute they come, they will keep coming back.”