In this country, with its significant communities of many of the world’s great religions, councils of faiths and inter faith groups are an increasingly important resource. My colleague Bhupinder Singh will be giving an overview of some of the types of local inter faith initiatives and particular ways that they can be a resource, but I would like first to offer some general reflections about the context which makes groups and councils so important.

This context is the increasing religious diversity of the UK. We are sitting here this morning in a lecture theatre in one of the most religiously diverse cities of the UK, Europe and indeed of the world. And this city is a microcosm of the wider change which has reshaped the faith identity of the population in many areas of the UK. As little as forty years ago few could have foreseen a time when that could be said. It has been a time of amazing change.

The responses of people in the UK to this increasing diversity have been various. Some view it as a threat. Others see it as a simple fact of life – that’s the way the country is now and it is just one more change in its long history. Yet others see the increasing religious diversity as being a factor of great promise: diversity will enrich the UK in many ways and the country’s citizens will be able to draw on their different spiritual heritages to make society better for all. This last view is very much the one which is held by the Inter Faith Network.

These responses to religious diversity point to a range of reasons why councils of faiths are and will be such an important resource in the UK in the 21^st century and I would like to explore them briefly. I will start, if you will forgive me, with the depressing response: the response which sees increasing diversity as a threat. This response can be, for example, of the kind: "This is a Christian country. If people of other religions come to live here, they can practise their own religion in private but we don’t want to know about it and there is no way our children should have to learn about it in school". This kind of response is sometimes, indeed very frequently, linked to deep anxiety about migration and immigration and can spill over into overt racism. Difference of religion is linked in the mind of the objector to "alienness" and "foreignness" and there is no willingness to accept the status quo or to find common ground in shared citizenship or in values that might be shared.

Suspicion of people who do not share their beliefs and practices is not, of course, just found among members of the longer established faith tradition of a country. There may be some members of other faiths who might see their own beliefs and practices as superior to those of other people of different faiths to the point where they are not very keen on interacting with them. And of course there are some people of no formal religion who take strong exception to religiousness of any kind and would like to keep it altogether out of the public sphere. Their reaction to the increasing religious diversity of the UK is to see it as dangerous and depressing.

Perhaps some of you listening to this are getting a little uneasy. Why is a person from an inter faith organisation talking about these negative responses which see religious diversity as a threat? Isn’t it better not to mention them and to just keep accentuating the positive? Well, that is an argument that can be made, but most people who work for good inter faith relations at some point or other often have to deal with responses akin to the sort I have just outlined and in particular with the first one which spills over into racism.

It is a very good thing that councils of faiths are there to help deal with these negative responses. They are, and will increasingly be, a resource for local government and for the areas they serve because they can be a factor in helping change attitudes, through their meetings, through advice and through sending people out to speak about the different faiths. That is one reason why their work is so important. Ignorance is a major contributor to prejudice and inter faith councils can be one very important tool for change. They are an important partner with the Race Equality Councils in the war against bigotry. RECs do not, of course, specifically contain faith issues within their brief so local inter faith councils will be particularly important in handling the faith issues which overlap with those affecting people because of their ethnic background.

Happily, not all responses to increasing religious diversity are of the negative kind. The second response I mentioned is the response that sees it as a simple fact of life and just one more twist in the road on the journey of a country with much diversity in its history. This kind of response often uses, as a principle for dealing with religious diversity, an emphasis on tolerance and respect. It is linked to the principle of equal treatment and the development of policies within areas such as employment and education which seek to reflect adequately the social, ethnic and religious nature of the area in question. Local councils of faiths which link the different faiths in an area can be a tremendously helpful resource for the public, and indeed private, sectors because they can offer input from men and women of different faiths to help ensure that policies and strategies are accurate and effective. They can help with the mechanics of the transition from a largely mono-faith society to one of many faiths.

This kind of response, which accepts religious diversity as just another change in the country’s history, shades into an even more positive response to religious diversity. This response affirms that the faiths share many values and can co-operate on social issues to make this a better society and indeed a better world to live in. Religious diversity is here seen as promise, not a threat. This even warmer response, which focuses on what is shared and on the possibility of co-operation, translates into working together on particular projects, such as Leicester’s environmental project some years ago. Local councils of faiths and inter faith groups are an extremely important resource for work of this kind.

So local councils of faiths are a key resource because they have a significant role to play on all these fronts: in countering prejudice, in helping develop the policies which ensure that diversity does not result in discrimination, and in finding ways for people of different faiths to draw on those values which may be shared to make a positive reality of life together in their town, city or region. It is probably for the kinds of reasons I have been mentioning that, in the foreword to The Local Inter Faith Guide, the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State, at the Department of Environment, Transport and the Regions at the time of publication wrote: "I commend to all Regional Development Agencies, Regional Chambers and Local Authorities the idea of encouraging the formation and development of councils of faiths and inter faith groups".

This encouragement comes, I think, out of a context where Government realises just what an important catalyst for social inclusion and social harmony local inter faith groups and councils can be. They build on the most affirmative of responses to religious diversity and see a UK which can draw in positive ways on the faith of many of its citizens. They are truly a resource for the 21^st century.

But what is the nature of these inter faith groups and councils which have come into existence in the last 30 years and how can they work with local government? I would like to ask my colleague Bhupinder Singh, who is the Network’s Information Officer to talk about some of the kinds of group and council which exist in the UK today.

Bhupinder Singh
Information Officer, Inter Faith Network

I aim to provide a brief overview of local inter faith initiatives in the UK today and the roles that they play in society. This conference focuses on multi-faith initiatives but there are also many groups that work with people of two or three different faiths, such as local branches of the Council for Christians and Jews and of the Three Faiths Forum. There are also organisations based in one faith, but which work with many faiths such as the Christians Aware Inter Faith Programme and the Westminster Inter Faith Programme.

Today, there are nearly a hundred local inter faith initiatives across the United Kingdom. Some like those in Birmingham, Leeds and Wolverhampton have been around for over 25 years. Others are just beginning. Each group or council has come into being out of different local circumstances and there have been a range of different motivations for launching them. Each is an independent body they are not branches of any national organisation.

By looking at these different types of groups and councils we can see both similarities and a range of different modes of operation and functions.

The aims of most groups and councils are to some degree similar.

• Most wish to ensure that key figures in each faith community know each other and develop relationships of mutual trust and support and to encourage friendships across traditions at all levels, and not just between faith leaders.

• They also aim for members of different faiths to come together to work to improve local civic life and promote inter religious co-operation with integrity on matters of common concern.

Local inter faith initiatives are voluntary organisations. They are usually established and run by volunteers some of whom work on behalf of their faith community or other organisation. Later this morning we will be hearing from a variety of people involved in local initiatives of varying sorts.

There are some areas of the country that do not have such an initiative at all. So much is dependent on the enthusiasm and know-how of local people to establish and run a successful initiative.

In some places which are less religiously diverse, groups have been formed nevertheless to encourage understanding of different faiths and of the issues which arise in our national multi faith society.

Local inter faith groups and councils hold a mixture of some of the following kinds of event and activities. The emphasis will vary from group to group and the type of group, to which I will come back to later.

• Discussion meetings

These may cover general themes such as social issues or specifically religious topics. (Some themes cut across religious, social, and cultural boundaries. For example, a common theme is the relationship between the older and younger generations and the transmission of religious tradition and belief)

• Occasional meetings with guest speakers

These may address religious, social or civic issues

• Visits to places of worship

Either in their locality or days out to places of worship further afield

• Pilgrimages or peace walks

These are often annual events which bring together local people to visit different places of worship.

• Celebrations

Often in conjunction with "One World Week" or UN Sunday, or local civic events

• Education

Some groups organise courses on aspects of different faiths. Others may work with schools helping to organise visits to places of worship or arranging guest speakers from different faiths

• Social get togethers

Well, people involved with inter faith groups need to relax sometimes!!

The most active groups or councils of faiths will hold a variety of events throughout the course of the year.

As I said earlier, the range of activities of a particular group or council of faiths will reflect the nature and aims of that group. It may be helpful to think of the types of groups on a spectrum of inter faith initiatives. At one end there are informal, individually based groups and at the other end fully representative councils of faiths to which faith community organisations nominate representatives. Both types play an important role in building good inter faith relations.

At the informal end of the spectrum, the inter faith group can be a group of people of different faiths meeting in each other’s homes to learn about their respective faiths and discuss issues
of common interest. There may be no fixed structure or even group name. Such groups usually have discussion and special events as their focus and welcome anyone who wishes to come along. Members may be drawn from across a city or town or be mainly from one neighbourhood. Some groups like to remain informal while others may decide to adopt a constitution and charge a membership fee, to cover expenses such as postage and hiring of venues for meetings.

The term "council of faiths" is usually used to identify an initiative which has a public role and is structured to include members of each major faith represented in the area. The constitution is usually designed to ensure that the make up of a management committee reflects the faith make up of the area. The most successful groups regularly check that these representatives are, in the view of their faith communities, the most appropriate people for the committee.

These kinds of representative councils tend to involve the leadership of the local faith communities (as well as other faith community members). Some of them also have an organisational member bodies as well as individuals.

Representative councils of faiths often play a formal role in advising local authorities and other public bodies in the area and making representations to them. The value of more formal structures of this kind in multi faith cities and towns is becoming increasingly apparent. The work of local councils of faiths is also likely to include business meetings with representatives of local government, the local health authority and similar public authorities.

Common issues on which councils of faiths provide input include:

Hospitals:

Work with their local hospitals and hospices to ensure that these can meet the needs of patients of different faiths.

Helping to find a list of clergy and lay people of the various faiths to be involved in chaplaincy and visiting

Advising on dietary issues

Discussing matters such as requirements for single sex wards.

Advising on facilities for local burials or cremations which meet the requirements of different faiths

Police forces are increasingly concerned to consult with all the different faith and ethnic minority communities in their area, so as to work for better community relations.

Many towns and cities are now working to ensure that any civic ceremonies with a religious dimension take into account the different faiths in their area. Increasingly,
local inter faith groups and councils are being asked to advise on the shape of services and ceremonies and to give information about the different faith communities and the leaders who need to be invited.

Work with local education authorities and SACRE’s (Standing Advisory Committee on Religious Education)

Dealing with issues relating to the faith identity of pupils

Groups can offer valuable input to planning consultations giving the views of local places of worship and faith community groups

This brief overview was designed to introduce the range of inter faith initiatives in existence and to introduce the variety of roles that councils of faiths can fulfil in local civic life. Later today we will hear from some of these groups themselves. The influence of councils of faiths is being felt in many parts of the country and this is a testament to all those involved with the groups and also to those local authorities that have opened their doors to working with these initiatives.

My colleague Harriet Crabtree talked earlier about the increasing religious diversity of the UK. It is this diversity and the responses to it that have given rise to the inter faith initiatives we now have in the UK. More and more these initiatives are being seen as an essential resource for creating the sort of society we all desire in the 21^st century. However, there is much more that can be done and in many places local voluntary initiatives require encouragement and support as well as the confidence that their contribution will be valued.

We hope that today’s conference will be a pointer both to local inter faith initiatives and public bodies as to what can be achieved. The relationships between the voluntary and public sectors may at times be difficult but I am sure you will all agree that the relationship is a potentially fruitful and important one.

Question: In view of what I have just heard, it would appear to me that there seems to be a great similarity between the things that inter faith councils are involved in and those that Racial Equality Councils carry out. Earlier on it was mentioned that Racial Equality Councils do not include faiths, but in our REC we have people of many faiths and they take a great part in the welfare and the government of our community so I would say that there seems to be a linkage between RECs and inter faith work.

Brian Pearce: There is bound to be a degree of overlap between the work of the two types of organisations. In different parts of the country, one will find a different relationship between them. In Tyne and Wear, the Inter Faith Panel was set up by the Racial Equality Council. In some other parts of the country, Racial Equality Councils have perhaps been a bit hesitant or reluctant, for one reason or another, about getting involved specifically with the faith dimension. However, as I have said, inevitably there is a good deal of overlap and I think that in Harriet Crabtree’s initial presentation, she brought out very clearly that those working on
race equality and those working on inter faith issues both have to contend with racism and bigotry and prejudice. Sadly, that is also a common feature of both sets of organisations, but so is the positive work of helping to build and construct the kind of society that we all want to have and on which headway is being made in many areas.

Question: I think that we are actually moving into new territory on inter faith issues. Bhupinder Singh’s wonderful description of the different kinds of inter faith co-operation, from the informal group to the council of faiths, reflects the situation we have all been working with for 25 years or so. Like all such bodies, inter faith groups and councils depend on the commitment and enthusiasm of individuals. They are quite vulnerable because of that. If you have got a number of enthusiasts for inter faith working in a place, then you will have a good enduring council of faiths, but even that will struggle to be in touch with all the faith communities - some of which, quite reasonably, do not want to be involved.

We are actually moving into a new scenario now through the greater recognition of the faith communities contribution in urban regeneration. The Black Country boroughs have set up a consortium to relate to the Regional Development Agency and they have created a ‘faith seat’. The representative of the faiths has to be able to deliver real communication with all the faith communities in the Black Country. So from Government is coming the demand that we get our act together if we are really to participate. I welcome that and I think it is a marvellous opportunity – a real challenge. It means, though, that we have actually got to move into a new gear. It can no longer be simply the enthusiasts saying "wouldn’t it be nice if we could work together?" This is one of the reasons why I really welcome today’s conference. I hope that we will address this urgent issue nationally, as well as regionally.

Bhupinder Singh: As mentioned earlier, there is a spectrum from informal local inter faith groups to representative councils of faiths. Representative councils of faiths can become more important structures with a little bit more support. The enthusiasts remain important, of course. The Inter Faith Network itself owes much to them. Local councils of faiths can build on a structure that may have been begun by enthusiasts but can be continued and developed with the involvement of different faith communities in the area, and also with the support and help of local authorities and other public bodies.

Brian Pearce: Speaking as an "enthusiast", I quite agree that we are happily no longer in a situation where we can go to a meeting and say "how nice that people of different faiths have come together, nothing much happened, there wasn’t much point to it but it was very nice". Of course it is still very nice, but actually the question is, What are we going to use these structures for? We know that local inter faith structures across this country are in varying degrees of health. Some are flourishing, some are finding difficulty in keeping going. From time to time we receive the bad news that one has gone into intensive care and sometimes they emerge and sometimes they do not. I hope very much that the workshops this afternoon will provide us with an opportunity to get to grips with some of these issues.