The Guardian’s Hope appeal has raised more than £350,000 for inspirational grassroots charities that bring divided communities together, promote tolerance and positive change, and tackle racism and hatred.
The figure, raised in less than two weeks, includes more than £30,000 donated during the annual telethon last Saturday, when more than 40 journalists including John Crace, Polly Toynbee and Simon Hattenstone were on hand to take readers’ calls.
The 2025 appeal is raising funds for five charities: Citizens UK, The Linking Network, Locality, Hope Unlimited and Who Is Your Neighbour?
Against a backdrop of extremist violence and rhetoric, growing demonisation of migrants, harassment and abuse of charities, and the re-emergence of “1970s-style racism”, our partner charities are delivering practical projects designed to promote empathy, build trust and establish common values.
Coverage to date has featured a Citizen’s UK “Walk of Hope” turning anger into community pride, Back on the Map’s work to revitalise a neighbourhood after far-right riots in 2024, and The Linking Network’s programme uniting primary schoolchildren from different faiths and backgrounds.
“Thank you to the Guardian readers for your incredible generosity. Your support transforms lives. You are helping to create a generation that values connection and unity,” said Zahra Niazi, a trustee at The Linking Network.
A spokesperson for Who Is Your Neighbour? said: “We’re incredibly grateful to the Guardian and its readers for their generous contributions. Your support will help us start new conversations, include more communities in our programmes, and make a meaningful impact where it matters most.”
The charities’ vital work helps bring communities together through practical projects that build resilience and strengthen relationships, creating hope and pride. They help people find common ground on issues that matter to them, from affordable housing to youth clubs, arts schemes, community centres and refugee welcome projects.
The appeal has struck a chord with many readers. One wrote via the online donation page: “I see every day the challenges faced by the community, so I was really uplifted by your article on Citizens UK. So easy to feel impotent and full of despair at the current state of things, so it was really inspiring to read of people making a difference in the community.”
Another told the Guardian: “I feel desperate and powerless at the way racism and demeaning discourse are fuelling hate and leading our country in a very bad direction, hopefully this is one small way I can try to help stop the tide.”
Introducing the appeal, the Guardian’s editor-in-chief, Katharine Viner, wrote: “Our partner charities – and the projects they support – are united in the belief that however loud the forces of hate and division, they will never drown out the values shared by the vast majority: tolerance, compassion and common humanity.”
