Our Journey – From Vision to Community

Every organisation has a story. Ours began in 1998, when Sikh Nari Manch UK was founded by our Lifetime President, Bibi Gurdev Kaur, with a vision of supporting and empowering women through education, confidence building, community engagement and mutual support.

As the charity grew, it became clear that the wider community would also benefit from a welcoming place where people could come together to learn, connect and support one another. This vision led to the opening of the Northside Welcome Centre in 2006.

Since then, Northside Welcome Centre has become the heart of our community work, providing a welcoming space for people of all ages, backgrounds, cultures and faiths. Today, we deliver a wide range of activities that promote health and wellbeing, lifelong learning, community participation and social inclusion.

Within the Centre is Mata Tripta Darbar, a dedicated space that continues to support Sikh spiritual gatherings and cultural activities. These activities honour the charity's heritage and continue through the generosity and support of the Sikh community, while our community programmes remain open and accessible to everyone.

Our work continues to be guided by the Sikh principle of Sarbat Da Bhalla—the welfare of all. This simple but powerful value inspires everything we do, encouraging us to create opportunities for people to learn, grow and thrive together.

As we celebrate 20 years of Northside Welcome Centre, we also celebrate the vision of our founder, the dedication of our trustees, volunteers, staff, partners, funders and everyone who has been part of our journey.

Our story continues—and we look forward to welcoming many more people through our doors in the years ahead.