Why Faiths?
West Yorkshire is home to a diverse range of faith communities which collectively and individually make an enormous contribution to society and to their local neighbourhoods. Places of worship have significant social capital in terms of expertise, services, people and buildings. They are also located in the heart of sections of the community that other agencies and programmes find hard to reach.
Many play a significant role in major schemes and enterprises: as partners in regeneration and neighbourhood renewal schemes; as social businesses contributing to the local economy; as providers of services in areas such as counselling, training, employment, youth work; and running local projects to respond to local needs for childcare, self-help groups, education, advice, cafes and drop-in centres.
Faith communities share a motivation to work with others to build a better, healthier, fairer more viable and enriched society and to create new hope and opportunities in some of the most under-resourced and socially isolated areas.
Increasingly, policy-makers are recognising the role of faith-based organisations and AFC also acts to inform and influence agencies that wish to encompass faith issues and engage more effectively with the faith sector.
