Awareness raising
Inter faith bodies play an important role in raising
awareness about the importance of working for good inter faith
relations and about the different faiths in their area. Some also
carry out diversity training to help public sector bodies and
companies respond well to the needs of staff and users of different
religious backgrounds.
Promoting good inter faith relations
Local inter faith bodies are important contributors to raising
awareness about the importance of good inter faith relations. Some
ways they do this are by:
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publicising local
inter faith events and activities and ensuring good coverage in
local media
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regularly making
contact with local authority staff and elected councillors to
remind them of the significance of this area of work and inviting
them to participate in events |
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sending speakers to
talk about inter faith issues in schools, colleges, places of
worship and work places |
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hosting occasional
special events to highlight how local faith communities are
working together |
Exhibitions
Putting together an exhibition of local places of
worship and faith communities can help create greater inter faith
understanding.
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Faiths in Nottingham
is a touring exhibition about different religions in this
multi-cultural city, forming a set with a more detailed Faiths File
leaflet pack. It was launched in October 2003, and has been on display
in schools, places of worship and at the Nottingham Prison. It has
already been on display at various public events in 2005 and is
scheduled to be used in one of the city's major Companies later this
year. The exhibition consists of one panel about each of nine faiths
(Bahá‘í, Brahma Kumaris, Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Islam,
Judaism, Quaker, Sikhism), one about Nottingham Inter Faith Council,
and two about our recent projects, all mounted on a display stand. The
leaflet pack contains a two-sided A4 sheet about each of the nine
faiths, printed in two colours, in an attractive full colour card
folder. Nottingham Inter Faith Council |
Faith fairs
'Faith fairs'
where different faith communities put out stalls to give information
about their beliefs and practices are also popular. Sometimes there is
a special theme, such as ‘winter festivals’ or ‘festivals of light’.
Directories and Guides
In some areas, inter faith bodies have contributed
to mapping exercises to list local places of worship and create
directories of these. Increasingly, these directories are produced as
on-line resources. A recent example is
Preston Faith Forum
A useful resource for finding out about faith organisations in your
area is
Religions in the UK: Directory 2007-10 published by the University of
Derby
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In this section
Find a local inter faith
body
Getting started
Checklist
Aims and names
Venues for meetings
Practical matters
Membership patterns
Groundrules
Constitutions
Calendar matters
Catering for events
Times for meetings
Media
Statements
Web sites
Financial issues
Charitable status
Volunteers and staff
Premises
Local Authorities
Local Strategic Partnerships
Activities
Awareness raising
Charity fundraising
Discussion meetings
Diversity training
Environmental
projects
Health and emergency services
Joint events
Special events
Multi faith civic ceremonies
Pilgrimages
Prayer and worship
Responding to tensions
Social gatherings
Trips and exchanges
Visiting places of worship
Women
Working with schools
Young people
Local Inter Faith Survey
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