Here, we take a closer look at the 2018 Fusion community Group of the Year finalists.

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CBHUK (Council of British Hajjis)

The Council of British Hajjis (CBHUK) is a charity which was founded in Bolton in 2006 and serves around 125,000 pilgrims each year across towns and cities in the UK.  The group works nationally for the welfare of Muslims embarking on the Hajj and Umrah pilgrimage to Makkah through education, empowerment, coexistence and promoting harmony of integration and civil participation from the lessons learnt on pilgrimage. 
 The team of over 100 dedicated volunteers who assist British nationals before, during and after Hajj and Umrah.  
They have pioneered the introduction of community-based health and safety advice and travel vaccination clinics.  The CBHUK is also the lead charity and partner to work nationally with the City of London Police to tackle Hajj Fraud.  Their work empowers consumers to choose tour operators wisely and if things do go wrong, they assist them to get their money back and bring the guilty parties to justice.  They are also the co-founders and secretariat to the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Hajj and Umrah. 

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Community Spirit

This hard-working group of volunteers have been assisting those on the margins of society week in week out in Blackburn Town Centre.
Community Spirit was founded in November 2014 and initially operated from a gazebo in a car park.  Now, they assist up to 60 vulnerable people with volunteers from all backgrounds and cultures.
The group offer a hot meal, hot drinks, snacks and emergency provisions as well as toiletries, warm clothing and jackets. 
The group provide a vital service to vulnerable people and aims to build bridges between those in crisis and those who can help.  Community Spirit look to support service users by signposting the to the relevant agencies for their requirements. They are also dedicated to lending a listening ear to those who need to talk.
Community Spirit runs throughout the year and receive food and donations from Greggs, Morrisons and a range of businesses in Blackburn and Accrington including Vaping Giant and Totally Wicked.
Community Spirit is completely self-funded and relies entirely on donations. 

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Indian Association Oldham

Celebrating its Golden Jubilee this year the Indian Association Oldham (IAO) was established in 1968, by the late Mr Jagatsinghji M Sisodia, a former judge from India. By the late 1960s approximately 40 Indian families had made Oldham as their new home.
The IAO has come a long way since then and its pioneering services are enjoyed by people from many backgrounds in Oldham as well as from outside of Oldham.
IAO has made unprecedented impact within Greater Manchester and the charity organisation, which began in a terraced house, now boasts a purposeful community centre, a Temple, a large hall for community activities which include sports and recreational facilities, a newly built extension funded entirely from its own community providing a dining area, educational suites and a Luncheon Club for over 50s which has been running since September 1994. 
The organisation encourages its members to get involved in Sewa Day and  aims to work towards a vibrant and flourishing community participating in cultural and community activities in Oldham and the surrounding area. 

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Rethink Rebuild Society Manchester

Rethink Rebuild Society (RR) is a Manchester-based charity that works towards improving the lives of refugees, asylum seekers, and immigrants, in particular but not exclusively Syrians in the UK, helping them become positively established within British society. 
RR began informally after the start of the uprising in Syria in March 2011. 
In response to the growing number of Syrian refugees in the UK, the group has established an advice service that provides support with benefits, job searches, and immigration matters helping those coming to the country to become self-reliant in their new country.
RR provides education and training in English language and culture; promotes the arts culture and heritage of refugee communities; and provides recreational facilities that bring communities together and relieve isolation. 
The group has helped to highlight the important issues on issues around migration within the British landscape through work on policy and media. 
Rethink Rebuild Society also partnered with Stockport for Peace and Stockport Amnesty Group to organise the "Silenced Voices" exhibition on detainees in Syria

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Outta Skool

Outta Skool is a community based Social Enterprise who specialise in school activities. 
Over the past three years Outta Skool has transformed the lives of over 500 people who are suffering from type 2 diabetes, PTSD, being overweight and having low confidence through their innovative and ground-breaking program called ‘Let's Get Active’.
The program has been supported by the Oldham Clinical Commissioning Group and is hailed as the most successful project from their Dragons Den initiative. 
The program runs over four Centres and works with over 35 Surgeries and offers over 60 classes every month which consist of a Personal Trainer, Healthy Cooking, diabetes prevention and management workshops. 
Over the years Outta Skool have worked in many schools in Oldham on many projects which include the annual ‘Oldham Skools Can Dance’ at the Queen Elizabeth Hall. 
The range of activities offered by Outta Skool are to help the social and personal development in young people in order to raise their confidence, cultural awareness and leadership skills.

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Warrington Guru Nanak Gurdwara

This pioneering Gurdwara has focussed its efforts on strengthening the bonds with all religions and raising important issues within the community.
Warrington Guru Nanak Gurdwara is the town’s only Sikh temple. Earlier this year the youth faction of the Gurdwara raised awareness on grooming as part of a seven-day roadshow across the nation.
The group visited various temples for its campaign, travelling from Scotland to Southampton.
The Gurdwara also deliver a weekly operation seeing hot meals dished out at the local YMCA. The Guru Nanak Free Kitchen (GNFK) deliver food on a weekly basis to the shelter. 
The vegetarian Indian food is prepared by volunteers at the Gurdwara before being transported to support the homeless, feeding up to 30 people. Warrington Guru Nanak Gurdwara also send clothing and toiletries.
This is part of the temple’s selfless service, known as seva, which is an essential part of the Sikh religion.
The temple also engage in helping the sick and elderly and are involved in coaching young people in sports activities.