Category Archives: Barking & Dagenham

Sophia Hubs job opportunity

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sophia hubs logoAnother job opportunity in London, this time with Sophia Hubs.  Rev Jonathan Evens (Barking and Dagenham) and Rev Rosie Fairhurst (who used to be with the Grubb Institute) have attended LBFN meetings in the past and are leading this initiative.  Jon also writes a popular blog on religion and culture.

The deadline is Friday 21st June.   Download the job description here and the information sheet here.  Please circulate to your networks.

Sophia Hubs are local centres which foster new social enterprises and businesses, harnessing the ageless principles of wisdom. We are seeking a talented Project Coordinator and Developer to set up and deliver a pilot Sophia Hub in Seven Kings and Newbury Park, thereby helping to take the Sophia Hubs project into its next phase of development and growth.

Applicants can apply by submitting their CV, a supporting statement explaining how their experience is right for this job and how they meet the person specification, and details of two referees.

Applications to be made by Friday 21st June 2013 to: Rev Jonathan Evens at jonathan.evens@btinternet.com or Sophia Hubs, c/o St John the Evangelist, St John’s Road, Seven Kings, Ilford, Essex IG2 7BB.

Interview date: Friday 5th July 2013.

 

How well do local police understand religious communities?

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This is a good read for any of us who work with the local police – advising, attending Gold Groups, being part of Community-Police Engagement Groups, monitoring Stop and Search or by training new recruits.  It’s a good read for police officers, too.

Photo from the Metropolitan Police Press Bureau

Interviews with the police in Tower Hamlets and Barking & Dagenham by researchers from the University of Leeds revealed a complex pattern of understanding.  The purpose of the research was to help police develop ways to understand the people they serve, to form

appropriate, positive relations with local religious communities and to navigate issues of belief, faith and religion as they arise in the operational and institutional environments of British policing.

The appendix contains the immortal statement, “Faith Groups have their own fantastic community networks.”

The research was carried out by the University of Leeds in partnership with the Cambridge Inter-Faith Programme.

Do you think they got it right?  Do we get hung up on ‘rules’ when a wider understanding is needed?  Will this research help?

I liked the quote from David Ford

Our society is not simply secular; nor is it simply religious; it is both religious and secular in complex ways. If it is to work well there need to be huge numbers of conversations and collaborations across religious and secular boundaries.

You can download the full report here.  A link to a summary of the research is here.