Rooted Together: Protect the Future of The ESEA Community Centre

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East and Southeast Asian Community Centre

The East and Southeast Asian Community Centre supports the ESEA diaspora in Hackney by providing essential services like welfare advice, cultural events, and community meals, fostering connection and belonging while prioritizing accessibility and care.

You are most deliciously invited to join us for the Centre&rsquo;s T4T debut &lt;3 Come meet new friends and catch up with old ones, all while savouring the company of London&rsquo;s finest dolls, mascs, and non-binnies. Meet fellow baddies to organise and conspire with, and perhaps&hellip; Your new crush?Outdoors in the garden, there will be two grills: a meaty one and a plant-based one. Bring your own grill fodder to share.Indoors, we will be making banners and placards for London Trans Pride the following weekend &mdash; materials provided.There will also be an open table, which can be used to highlight fundraisers, share flyers, or sell and exchange things &mdash;&nbsp;zines, prints, crafts, consumables, CDs, stickers, etc. No boring application process, just bring your wares and a payment method, if relevant.RSVP here: bit.ly/esea-t4t-bbqThis event is a space for trans ESEA folks only.

ESEA T4T BBQ + Banner/Placard-making Session

An evening made by us, just for us.Come share food, sing your heart out, and be fully yourself in a room full of queer ESEA community. Bring a dish that means something to you and the song you always sing alone in your room. This is the night to finally belt it out.This is a free event and a space for queer ESEA folks only. If you&#39;re able to, a donation on the way in is warmly welcome and helps us keep making evenings like this possible. What to bring: a signature dish + your go-to bangerWho this is for: queer ESEA community

ESEA Queer Karaoke + Potluck night

Join us for a fun and friendly, all-generations queer mingle.&nbsp;With communal potluck, mindful movement, short film screenings and a grand finale not to miss: a DRAG auntie/uncle/auncle catwalk. Come ready to transform yourself into the proudest version of your future elder. Prizes awarded for best outfit and best strut! We welcome anyone who identifies as queer and from the ESEA community. Pre-register here with donation.

Queer Mingle

A gentle community space for ESEA queer folks to explore movement, consent, relational presence and nourishing touch. Through gentle movement inspired by yoga and qigong, partner games and introductory tuina practices, we will move from self-awareness toward collective care &mdash; slowly, playfully and with choice at every step. Rough Session Outline5min intro/grounding40min gentle movement with David30min tuina practice with Nat15min sharing circle

How We Hold Each Other

Join us at ESEACC for our first-ever Dragon Boat Sports Day&nbsp;A celebration of East and Southeast Asian culture, community, and a healthy bit of friendly competition.No boat. No river. No experience needed.This is a full day out for everyone: community members, allies, families, and curious newcomers. We&#39;re bringing together two group games and six traditional folk activities, an indoor market brimming with ESEA food and drink, Queer Info desk&nbsp;and hands-on craft workshops with Yi Crafts, all in one welcoming, inclusive space..Group gamesTake on our land dragon boat race (旱地賽龍舟): all the team energy of dragon boating, minus the paddles and the splash.&nbsp;Then pit your strength and spirit against the other side in a tug of war (拔河).&nbsp;Both games are designed for mixed abilities and maximum fun. Folk game stallsTest your skill and patience across six traditional folk challenges: keep a jianzi in the air with just your feet (踢毽子), aim your arrows in pitch pot (投壺), try your luck at ring toss (套圈), race through bean sorting (挑蜜豆), jump rope (跳皮筋), and pop a balloon or two (扎氣球). Step up, have a go, and collect those bragging rights. Indoor marketBrowse stalls loaded with ESEA food and drink, handpicked books, jewellery, and craft dolls. Perfect for a gift or a treat for yourself. WorkshopsGet hands-on with Chinese knotting and bracelet making, and craft your own handmade sachet to take home. Queer info deskStaffed by our community partner El Jia from the People&#39;s Letters bookshop, our queer info desk will be a welcoming drop-in space where you can pick up information on LGBTQ+ friendly venues and services, and get the latest guidance on what the recent EHRC updates mean for our transgender community members. Come with questions, or just come to connect. Whether you&#39;re here for the games, the food, the craft, or just to see what dragon boating looks like on dry land, you&#39;re welcome here.

Dragon Boat Sports Day at ESEACC

At the East and Southeast Asian Community Centre, we believe the heart of our culture is always found around the table. Dine for ESEA Diaspora is our way of turning that shared love for food into a legacy of support. When your guests sit down for a meal, they aren&#39;t just enjoying your incredible dishes &mdash;they are helping us keep our community&rsquo;s stories, safety, and heritage alive. By adding a small, meaningful contribution to the bill (whether it&rsquo;s donation of &pound;2 per table, 50p per person, or a percentage of a signature dish), you&rsquo;re helping us provide vital resources, celebrate our joy, and ensure everyone in our diaspora has a place to belong and feel supported. It&rsquo;s simple, it&rsquo;s impactful, and it&rsquo;s a way for your diners to say &quot;Thank you&quot; to the culture that feeds them.

At the East and Southeast Asian Community Centre, we believe the heart of our culture is always found around the table. Dine for ESEA Diaspora is our way of turning that shared love for food into a legacy of support.When your guests sit down for a meal, they aren't just enjoying your incredible dishes —they are helping us keep our community’s stories, safety, and heritage alive. By adding a small, meaningful contribution to the bill (whether it’s donation of £2 per table, 50p per person, or a percentage of a signature dish), you’re helping us provide vital resources, celebrate our joy, and ensure everyone in our diaspora has a place to belong and feel supported.It’s simple, it’s impactful, and it’s a way for your diners to say "Thank you" to the culture that feeds them.

Dining for the ESEACC Diaspora

For 40 years, the ESEACC has been delivering vital services to the diaspora community of Hackney and beyond. Without the generosity of our supporters, our current funding will sustain us for only one more year. Help us continue our vital work by supporting our fundraising campaign. Our Roots: A Legacy of Care and SolidarityThe East and Southeast Asian Community Centre (ESEACC) is a grassroots, community-run space established by and for the East and Southeast Asian diaspora in Hackney and its surrounding boroughs. It grew out of a small, volunteer-led lunch service, where housewives came together to cook and share meals with a homesick Chinese community in Hackney. From this simple act of care and solidarity emerged the foundations of organised Chinese community spaces, including what later became Hackney Chinese Community Services (HCCS), and ultimately, the ESEACC. The History of our Journey to the Old Bath HouseBefore moving into the Old Bath House at 12-14 Englefield Road, the organisation operated as HCCS at 28-32 Ellingfort Road in London Fields, where it had been based since 1987. Prior to ESEACC&rsquo;s arrival, the Old Bath House was home to the An Viet Foundation from 1981 to 2017. Founded by Khanh Thanh Vu MBE, the Foundation supported generations of Vietnamese war refugees in building a new life in the UK.When the An Viet Foundation closed in 2017 following a decision by Hackney Council, HCCS ultimately absorbed the Vietnamese community, who had relied on An Viet, into its beneficiary base. This moment of inter-community solidarity laid the foundations for what would later become the East and Southeast Asian Community Centre. A Growing Community and a Second HomeSince being allocated use of the Old Bath House in 2018, and following several rounds of fundraising to refurbish the historic building, what began as a small volunteer-led initiative tucked into a kitchen-sized room has grown into a vital community hub supporting people across generations. Today, the Centre offers a wide range of services, including the Luncheon Club, welfare and benefits advice, housing support, wellbeing activities, interpretation services, cultural events and celebrations, and programmes that support and amplify the voices of East and Southeast Asian artists, creatives, small businesses and entrepreneurs. More than this, for many who seek mutual connection and a sense of belonging, the Centre has become a second home&mdash;a safe and welcoming space where people from minoritised backgrounds can be themselves, alongside others who share similar experiences.&nbsp; The Impact of Our Core ServicesWhile the space has grown, the dedication to community care remains unchanged. The Centre is run by a team of five staff, supported by a committed pool of volunteers. Together, they deliver services that prioritise accessibility over income generation. Many of the Centre&rsquo;s core programmes&mdash;including our flagship Luncheon Club&mdash;are intentionally free or heavily subsidised to ensure older community members are not excluded. With just over &pound;35,000 of annual funds to cover two paid chefs, ingredients and utilities, the Luncheon Club serves over 8,000 meals a year. A similar impact can be seen in our welfare and benefit advice service, which is delivered solely by existing staff. Even with limited resources, the service supports at least two people per day, three days a week. Thanks to project-specific funding, we can offer dedicated services such as Together We Rise - a welfare entitlement advice programme specifically for pension-age ESEA women enabled by non-profit Independent Age. The project provides two days of in-person support each week and has already supported over 10 repeat clients, securing over &pound;10,000 in financial entitlements through the welfare system since its launch in August 2025. The Challenge: Rising Costs and Funding GapsSince moving to the Old Bath House, demand for our services has continued to rise, particularly as the wider funding landscape for charities has become increasingly challenging. While moving into a larger building has allowed us to support more people, it has also brought much higher operating costs, including rent and utilities. Although we receive funding for specific projects, we do not receive core funding to sustain the Centre on a day-to-day basis. More recently, the loss of a key funding stream that historically supported the Luncheon Club and advice services has left us with operating funds to cover essential costs for only one year.Against a difficult economic backdrop and declining support for local community groups, our previous reliance on short-term project grants has become increasingly unsustainable. As a result, the Luncheon Club and advice services are now fully self-funded. To continue operating at our current level, the Centre requires at least &nbsp;&pound;25,000 per month to cover staffing, utilities, and the essential costs of delivering these services. How You Can HelpYour support is crucial to ensuring this work can continue. A donation today helps keep the doors of the Centre open, meals on the table, and vital advice and support accessible to those who need it most. By supporting ESEACC, you help strengthen dignity, care, and long-term wellbeing across East and Southeast Asian communities.

For 40 years, the ESEACC has been delivering vital services to the diaspora community of Hackney and beyond. Without the generosity of our supporters, our current funding will sustain us for only one more year. Help us continue our vital work by supporting our fundraising campaign.Our Roots: A Legacy of Care and SolidarityThe East and Southeast Asian Community Centre (ESEACC) is a grassroots, community-run space established by and for the East and Southeast Asian diaspora in Hackney and its surrounding boroughs. It grew out of a small, volunteer-led lunch service, where housewives came together to cook and share meals with a homesick Chinese community in Hackney. From this simple act of care and solidarity emerged the foundations of organised Chinese community spaces, including what later became Hackney Chinese Community Services (HCCS), and ultimately, the ESEACC.The History of our Journey to the Old Bath HouseBefore moving into the Old Bath House at 12-14 Englefield Road, the organisation operated as HCCS at 28-32 Ellingfort Road in London Fields, where it had been based since 1987. Prior to ESEACC’s arrival, the Old Bath House was home to the An Viet Foundation from 1981 to 2017. Founded by Khanh Thanh Vu MBE, the Foundation supported generations of Vietnamese war refugees in building a new life in the UK.When the An Viet Foundation closed in 2017 following a decision by Hackney Council, HCCS ultimately absorbed the Vietnamese community, who had relied on An Viet, into its beneficiary base. This moment of inter-community solidarity laid the foundations for what would later become the East and Southeast Asian Community Centre.A Growing Community and a Second HomeSince being allocated use of the Old Bath House in 2018, and following several rounds of fundraising to refurbish the historic building, what began as a small volunteer-led initiative tucked into a kitchen-sized room has grown into a vital community hub supporting people across generations. Today, the Centre offers a wide range of services, including the Luncheon Club, welfare and benefits advice, housing support, wellbeing activities, interpretation services, cultural events and celebrations, and programmes that support and amplify the voices of East and Southeast Asian artists, creatives, small businesses and entrepreneurs. More than this, for many who seek mutual connection and a sense of belonging, the Centre has become a second home—a safe and welcoming space where people from minoritised backgrounds can be themselves, alongside others who share similar experiences. The Impact of Our Core ServicesWhile the space has grown, the dedication to community care remains unchanged. The Centre is run by a team of five staff, supported by a committed pool of volunteers. Together, they deliver services that prioritise accessibility over income generation. Many of the Centre’s core programmes—including our flagship Luncheon Club—are intentionally free or heavily subsidised to ensure older community members are not excluded. With just over £35,000 of annual funds to cover two paid chefs, ingredients and utilities, the Luncheon Club serves over 8,000 meals a year. A similar impact can be seen in our welfare and benefit advice service, which is delivered solely by existing staff. Even with limited resources, the service supports at least two people per day, three days a week. Thanks to project-specific funding, we can offer dedicated services such as Together We Rise - a welfare entitlement advice programme specifically for pension-age ESEA women enabled by non-profit Independent Age. The project provides two days of in-person support each week and has already supported over 10 repeat clients, securing over £10,000 in financial entitlements through the welfare system since its launch in August 2025.The Challenge: Rising Costs and Funding GapsSince moving to the Old Bath House, demand for our services has continued to rise, particularly as the wider funding landscape for charities has become increasingly challenging. While moving into a larger building has allowed us to support more people, it has also brought much higher operating costs, including rent and utilities. Although we receive funding for specific projects, we do not receive core funding to sustain the Centre on a day-to-day basis. More recently, the loss of a key funding stream that historically supported the Luncheon Club and advice services has left us with operating funds to cover essential costs for only one year.Against a difficult economic backdrop and declining support for local community groups, our previous reliance on short-term project grants has become increasingly unsustainable. As a result, the Luncheon Club and advice services are now fully self-funded. To continue operating at our current level, the Centre requires at least £25,000 per month to cover staffing, utilities, and the essential costs of delivering these services.How You Can HelpYour support is crucial to ensuring this work can continue. A donation today helps keep the doors of the Centre open, meals on the table, and vital advice and support accessible to those who need it most. By supporting ESEACC, you help strengthen dignity, care, and long-term wellbeing across East and Southeast Asian communities.

Join us for a day celebrating the local harvest &amp; food conversation! What is ESEA Harvest Swap?ESEA Hackney Harvest and Larder Swap is a community harvest and food-sharing event is a community harvest and food-sharing event where people come together to swap things they&rsquo;ve grown, made, cooked, preserved or foraged. If you garden, grow, cook, bake, preserve, forage or simply have something delicious from your kitchen or garden that you&rsquo;d like to share, ESEA Harvest Swap is for you!&nbsp; What should I bring?You can bring anything you canned, jarred, cooked, baked, blended, created, produced, foraged or grew yourself. Here are some examples of things you can bring to swaps: homemade chilli oil, pickled ginger, strawberry jam, fresh Thai basil, backyard eggs, gluten-free pandan cakes, lemongrass tea blends, garlic salt, buckwheat rye bread, pepper relish, rooftop-beehive honeycomb, rice crackers... How much should I bring?&nbsp;Bring anywhere from 5 to 15 items or more! Each registered participant will get a table, and you are allowed to share your table with one friend! All trades are one-for-one barters (my jar of pickled mustard greens for your bundle of Thai basil), so you&rsquo;ll leave with the same number of items as you came with. You can bring multiples of the same item (6 jars of homemade chilli oil), or a number of different items (3 bags of sesame biscuits, 2 jars of pickles, 1 bunch of shiso), For a whole cake and loaf of bread, you could divide them into multiples depending on their size.&nbsp;&mdash;you&rsquo;ll still make the same number of trades. &nbsp; How does it work?&nbsp;When you arrive, you&#39;ll set up your swap items on a table and fill out a swap card for each one. A swap card is a piece of paper that sits next to your item &mdash; on the card, you&rsquo;ll write your name, what your item is, and any information people might want to know (e.g. vegan; extra spicy; contains nuts; keep refrigerated; home-grown).Other swappers will write down their &ldquo;bids&rdquo; on your swap card to let you know they&rsquo;re interested in your item. You&rsquo;ll also make your own bids on other people&rsquo;s swappables.Bids are not binding &mdash; they&rsquo;re simply a way of saying, &ldquo;I&rsquo;m interested in this, and I&rsquo;d be open to swapping with you.&rdquo; How do I make my trades?&nbsp;The actual swapping happens about 30 minutes into the event once everyone finishes setting up their table. We&rsquo;ll all wear name tags, the organisers will make an announcement, and the swapping begins!Consult your swap cards, approach the people you&rsquo;d like to trade with, and make your swaps. Some people beeline straight to the items they&rsquo;ve been eyeing, while others hang back and let other swappers approach them. Everyone has the right to accept or decline swap offers as they come.It can get a little hectic, but it always works out. &nbsp;And you&rsquo;ll go home laden with delicious things grown, made and shared by your new friends and neighbours!Bring on your proudest garden harvest! We look forward to swapping with you!&nbsp;For any enquiries, please contact: Bik Yu bikyu@hackneychinese.org.uk

East and Southeast Asian Community Centre

East and Southeast Asian Community Centre

Events

Events

ESEACC Hackney Harvest & Larder Swap

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Dining for the ESEACC Diaspora

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Rooted Together: Protect the Future of The ESEA Community Centre

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