Inter Faith Network celebrates 30th birthday

A leading interfaith organisation celebrated its thirtieth birthday, by bringing together 140 representatives from different communities last week.

Participants of the Inter Faith Network for the UK’s met for the organisation’s annual meeting, in which they discussed the future of faith relations in Britain.

The meeting, which took place at the Queen Elizabeth II Centre in London, included representation from the Jewish community with Rabbi David Mason and Marie van der Zyl of the Board of Deputies, and Rabbi Warren Elf of the Faith Network for Manchester.

A range of panel discussions, plenaries and presentations focussed on issues such as responding to crises, and challenging rising hatred and extremism and safety.

Rabbi Warren Elf, gave a presentation on the inter faith response to the Manchester terror attack, whilst Rabbi David Mason chaired a discussion group on safety at places of worship.

Co-Chairs, the Rt Revd Richard Atkinson OBE and Jatinder Singh Birdi, said: “We look back at this 30th Anniversary point and celebrate positive achievements. However, the focus of the Inter Faith Network is firmly on the future. We live in a time when the need for inter faith understanding and cooperation is ever greater and where communities engaging well together is vital for the wellbeing of our shared society. The Inter Faith Network for the UK will continue to have a crucial role in helping enable this.”

IFN, whose work is supported by the Department for Communities and Local Government, works with faith and interfaith groups to promote understanding between communities and tackle prejudice. They will host their annual Interfaith Week between 12-19 November.