Family Nest is a new constituted community organisation supporting families on low incomes, single parents, isolated individuals, and residents facing financial hardship. The aim is to help people move from crisis to stability and then to independence through practical support, emotional connection and community building.
As Hull faces high levels of deprivation, many families experience cost of living pressures, food insecurity, isolation, poor mental wellbeing, barriers to employment and a lack of support networks. The new group wants to build stronger communities by creating 30-40 community clusters across Hull and the East Riding with the aim of reaching hundreds of families in deprived neighbourhoods.
The first Family and Community Development Cluster has been launched in St Andrew’s and Docklands supporting around 20 families with capacity for 40-45 families. We visited the group to find out more about how they are creating a stronger community, the support they offer and how families, volunteers, partners and the wider community can get involved.
Bashir Siraj, founder of the small but growing organisation, has dedicated his life to supporting vulnerable individuals and families across Hull and the East Riding for the past 20 years. His journey comes from his own experience from when he first arrived in Hull and local organisations, including the churches and VCSE, helped him. He then began his early voluntary work with local organisations and churches, managing the Open Doors Project, helping establish the City of Sanctuary group, serving as Secretary of the Hull & East Riding Interfaith Group, and helping initiate Hull’s first Food Bank with the Methodist Church and Trussell Trust.
From 2020 to 2026, Bashir founded and developed Welcome House supporting thousands across Hull, the East Riding and Grimsby. He now continues this work through Family Nest. Its work focuses on practical support, emotional wellbeing, community connection, and empowering people to rebuild stability and confidence.
“The aim over the next two years is to develop a large number of clusters supporting hundreds of families”, he said. “The cost of living is affecting everyone and we want to address this issue.
“We work with parents and individuals on low income. We will help them to improve their lives, help them to learn new skills and build connections.
“There are ways we can help them. We can offer practical support like household items, we bring people together to address the issue of isolation promoting Integration, we encourage them to join us or other organisations as a volunteer. We also offer support in terms of employability, helping with CVs and we also organise activities which help people stay physically and mentally healthy.
“One of our main focus points is to help people experiencing this cost of living crisis. We do this with support from other organisations and working together with partners like Bameen. Family Nest is open to everyone, we work with all communities with our aim being to build a stronger community.
“We like to educate people into taking ownership of the area where they live, bringing people together from different cultures and different backgrounds, to support and understand each other to create a social harmony. This is our first cluster, we have been here for a few months and can see that things are taking shape. Once we finish this one we will move onto another area to form another cluster. The aim is to create 30-50 clusters across the city.
“We are bringing people together, we go into communities, work with them and connect them with local people, local resources, inspiring them, helping them build knowledge or a sense of belonging. We are building a network with organisations who offer specialist advice so we also know who to signpost people to.
“We are a friend to offer support by organising activities and bringing people together. I left Welcome House and set up this group in January because I wanted to reach out to the larger community. There are organisations looking after the people from different cultures but we now need to bring all of the people from the different cultures together.
“We are here to give them support but we also need their support. Maybe they are in need but they also have some other skills, so at the same time it is give and take. They are having support but at the same time they are helping someone else with their time and skills.
“This is how we can support each other looking forward and looking to deliver a safer, stronger and stable community, a well-connected community where everyone can feel safe and have a good future. We are one community irrespective of colour and race. We have to act as one community, that’s the best way to move forward and secure our future.”
Family Nest is looking for people who can join as volunteers and help those going through difficult times. Bashir added: “We welcome organisations who want to support us through collaboration and we would like Hull City Council to support us too. If we develop a big network of clusters throughout the city, we need to have their support too.”
Siham Gourmate, originally from Algeria, knows first hand how these community groups can help and is now a mentor at Family Nest. She said: “We try to help single mums, families and individuals who are on low income, we try our best. It’s like my second family here because, when I came here, I was alone and feeling stressed but now I volunteer and we do cooking, activities for children, we do the food bank and we are always happy to see people here with our children as well.
“I moved to Hull five years ago and couldn’t speak English at all but just volunteering, listening and learning has helped my English. I improved myself and am happy. It helps Syrine [her daughter] here too. Before she was just at home, she didn’t know people but now she is playing and meeting new people too.”
Dawda Jatta, from community interest organisation Bameen, has joined in partnership with Family Nest and said: “Working in the community is what we are already doing through Bameen, so now in collaboration with Bashir and the Family Nest, we have that support network in supporting the community because there is a need for it.
“Bashir has worked in the community for more than 20 years and knows a lot of the support available and people in the community and we bring surplus food every week because we know at the moment energy costs are going through the roof. It’s a problem all around the world so we try to help this community by providing the surplus food – it’s welcome to anyone who is struggling and on low income.”
Family Nest wants to reach and empower more people in need, raise awareness of the challenges families are facing, and strengthen the support available to vulnerable households. It thanked the Sir James Reckitt Charity for a one-off support donation, and its partners who help by providing the safe and welcoming space for weekly community support services – the Maurice Rawling Community Centre, on Tuesdays from 10am to 12pm, and the Quaker Meeting House, on Thursdays between 10am and 12pm.
Interested people can volunteer to help with peer support, outreach, food distribution, events and activities. Community groups, schools, churches, mosques and local services can partner with Family Nest and any donations support its hardship fund, food programme or community activities.
Family Nest can be found on its Facebook page here, website here and can be contacted via email here
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