A tour of local ‘wins’ shows how the charity Citizens UK is working with residents to build a better, fairer society

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• Communities are our defence against hatred. Now, more than ever, we must invest in hope

Dashing through the snow with Father Chris … It does not get any more seasonal, even if it feels like there might be a final syllable missing. To be honest we are not really dashing, it’s more a leisurely walk-and-talk, around North Shields. And the snow, the remnants of an early Tyneside flurry, is patchy and dirty rather than deep and crisp and even.

Father Chris is real though – Father Chris Hughes, Catholic priest; the diocese is a strategic partner for the local chapter of Citizens UK, one of five charities supported by this year’s Guardian charity appeal, under the theme of “hope”. The appeal supports grassroots voluntary groups that nurture community pride and positive change, providing an antidote to division and hate.

Milestone reached as journalists including Polly Toynbee and John Crace prepare for fundraising event on Saturday

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The first week of the Guardian’s Hope appeal has raised more than £200,000 for grassroots charities doing inspiring work to bring divided communities together, promoting tolerance and positive change, and opposing racism and hate.

The milestone was reached before the annual fundraising telethon on Saturday. Journalists preparing to take donations over the phone include Polly Toynbee, John Crace, Jonathan Liew, Patrick Wintour and Simon Hattenstone.

Far-right rhetoric fuelled rioting here in 2024, but Back on the Map is helping to unite the community, through good accommodation, new shops, and an aim to genuinely uplift and improve people’s lives
• Donate to the Guardian Charity Appeal 2025 here
• Communities are our defence against hatred. Now, more than ever, we must invest in hope

When 47-year-old shop assistant Claire Carter was younger, her mother told her to “never live on the long streets” – terrace-lined roads about half a mile long that lead from the centre of Hendon, Sunderland, to the sea. These six streets have a reputation for being “full of wrong ’uns, full of stolen cars, places getting smashed up”, she says. Close by is Fletcher’s News & Booze, the shop where Tommy Robinson hosted a book signing in 2017 that ended in physical fights and 21 arrests.

Sunderland more widely has been a key site for far-right politics: in 2024 violent anti-Muslim riots broke out after misinformation spread on social media, suggesting that the man behind fatal stabbings at a children’s dance class in Southport was an illegal migrant. About 500 people came to Sunderland’s city centre to a protest that quickly descended into what a judge has since described as “an orgy of mindless destruction, violence and disorder”, with rioters setting a car on fire, shouting Islamophobic chants and throwing stones at the police.

Hope appeal supports grassroots charities who work with communities hit by division, distrust and racism

• Donate to our charity appeal here

More than £100,000 has been raised by generous Guardian readers in less than a week for the Hope appeal, supporting grassroots charities that promote tolerance, compassion and social justice in communities hit by division, distrust and racism.

The appeal has partnered with five charities: Citizens UK, The Linking Network, Locality, Hope Unlimited, and Who Is Your Neighbour?