London Boroughs Faiths Network Newsletter - December 2025
The London Boroughs Faiths Network (LBFN) brings faith and belief communities together so they are seen, heard and part of shaping a fairer, safer and more connected London.
Welcome to the December edition of the London Boroughs Faiths Network newsletter.
Every month brings new conversations, new challenges and new moments of connection across London’s faith and belief communities. As we end this year, we are continuing the work that sits at the heart of LBFN. Bringing people together, building trust and strengthening the resilience of the communities we serve.
For us, resilience is more than responding when a crisis happens. It is about how our faith groups prepare for the pressures we know are coming, how we stay connected through uncertainty and how we work together to build a fairer, safer and more cohesive London.
This season also brings a mix of celebrations for many of our communities. Christmas, Chanukah, the winter solstice, Kwanzaa and other cultural and religious observances all carry their own traditions and meaning. However you mark this time, we hope it offers rest, connection and moments of hope after a long year. And for those working or volunteering through the colder months to support neighbours, congregations and local communities, we recognise and deeply value everything you are holding.
As we move into 2026, we will continue to support Borough Faith Forums, invest in practical and accessible training and create spaces where community insight can genuinely shape how public agencies understand what our communities are experiencing. Over the coming months we will be piloting new tools and pathways that strengthen local leadership, psychosocial support and volunteer capacity across the city.
Whether you have been with us for years or are joining our newsletter for the first time, welcome. We are glad you are here. We look forward to working with you in the months ahead as we continue to strengthen our networks, deepen our partnerships and build a more resilient London together.
Contents:
- LBFN Impact Programmes
- Training & Learning
- Faith & Health
- Social Cohesion
- Partner & Cross-sector Activity
- Other Activity
LBFN Impact Programmes
Training & Learning Opportunities:
Community Resilience Training
We recently finished another iteration of our Community Resilience Training for Faith and Community Leaders. This comprehensive training travels around London to help leaders boost resilience in their community.
Learning topics include combatting hate crime, emergency first aid, climate risks, and much more!
Community participants gain deeper understanding of a range of topics but, more than that, they also get validation for their own existing knowledge and lived experience. This is something much harder to do online; in person interaction enables the discussion between participants and presenters to range back and forth.
If you are interested in attending one of these training courses, keep an eye on our communications channels in 2026 - our next course could take place in your borough!
What’s Coming Up?
Help us to make our training as helpful as possible for London!
We host Community Resilience Training on a regular basis (see above), but are there any other training programmes you would like LBFN to run?
Some examples include:
How to be a volunteer responder to local emergencies
Psychosocial support for people impacted by emergencies
Active bystander training
Understanding Martyn’s Law
How to complete a Community Emergency Plan
If any of these appeal to you, please fill out our end-of-year resilience training survey to have your say.
FAITH AND HEALTH
Faith & Health Action Forum – NHS 10-Year Plan Focus
This month’s Faith & Health Action Forum focused on reviewing the NHS 10-Year Plan and what it means for faith and community engagement as we look toward 2026. Discussions highlighted the persistent gap between health systems and the spaces people actually use — churches, mosques, temples, gurdwaras, and community centres.
The session explored:
How faith communities already act as trusted first responders and prevention partners
Gaps in social prescribing and digital access
The need to move from fragmented engagement to coordinated, action-oriented collaboration
Call to Action:
We are now inviting organisations interested in shaping practical, community-led health action to join this space as we move into 2026. The Forum is shifting from discussion to test-and-learn pilot actions, co-designed with communities and health partners to generate real, usable evidence of what works.
London Jewish Health Partnership
LBFN was also invited to present to the London Jewish Health Partnership, where we introduced the objectives of the Faith & Health Action Forum.
We highlighted why coordinated engagement with faith communities matters — particularly as health systems increasingly aim to shift care “from hospitals to communities” under the NHS long-term vision.
The session opened conversations on partnership, prevention, and the unique role of faith spaces as trusted community anchors.
SOCIAL COHESION
Sydney Chanukah Attack
We are horrified and saddened to hear the news from Australia where a terrorist attack targeting the Jewish community has claimed several lives and left others injured. The attack took place during a family Chanukah event that should have been a time of joy. Our thoughts and prayers are with all those suffering.
On 16 December LBFN hosted a gathering of partners and colleagues to discuss the impact of the Sydney attack on Londoners and how we can continue to work together for positive change.
In attendance were participants from diverse faith traditions, local faith forums, colleagues from VCS Emergencies Partnership and the London Communities Emergencies Partnership, other voluntary sector partners, mental health and community specialists, colleagues from London Resilience Unit, and GLA Community Engagement. This conversation will feed in to our Voices for Change initiative.
Holocaust Memorial Day
This difficult day is an opportunity for all of us to reflect on hatred and division in society, and where that can lead. Holocaust Memorial Day reminds us of the importance of our work, where we stand against hate and promote inclusion and togetherness for the good of our communities.
In divisive times, people of different faiths coming together to promote social cohesion is deeply important to our national community, especially given recent events.
Inter Faith Week 2025 was a reminder that, despite how fractured our society may feel, it's always possible for us to connect and celebrate our similarities, and our differences, together. We are looking forward to the next Inter Faith Week in 2026!
Holocaust Memorial Day takes place on January 27. There are lots of activities to take part in during this time, or you could even run your own. Follow the link below to find out more.
Holocaust Memorial Day - Find out more
Voice for Change
There is a direct line from inflammatory speech, especially in the public sphere, to murderous and violent acts of hatred as we have seen in Manchester and Peacehaven, and most recently, in Australia.
Hatred, divisiveness, incitement and volatility have increased. We are a society at a crossroads, and it is everyone’s responsibility; those groups who have been attacked should not have to bear the burden of combatting hatred by themselves. LBFN is dedicating to acting as a catalyst for groups to come together to enable this change.
As we look towards 2026, we have a number of focuses moving forwards on what needs to change, particularly in relation to the terrible violence we have seen both locally and abroad in recent months.
We acknowledge the role that hate speech and inflammatory language has on the lead-up to violence. We have a proposal for a framework that prevents incitement to violence.
Active bystander training strengthens the ability of individuals to challenge harassment and we will continue to support such training moving forwards.
If you would like to find out more about what needs to change, click the link below.
'What needs to change' document
OTHER ACTIVITY
Winter Preparedness Webinar
As we enter the coldest period of the year, the Winter Preparedness Webinar was delivered jointly with the London Communities Emergencies Partnership (LCEP), providing practical advice to faith and community organisations on preparing for winter risks.
Topics included severe weather impacts, supporting vulnerable residents, community-level emergency planning, and how faith groups can play a frontline role in winter response and prevention.
Following our recent winter preparedness work with partners, faith spaces are encouraged to:
Review winter support plans
Identify vulnerable community members early
Display emergency contact information clearly
Ensure volunteers understand safeguarding and welfare escalation pathways
Find other seasonal preparedness webinars, plus lots more, on the LCEP homepage
London Resilient Communities – Faith Sector Information Session (Joint with Community Prepared)
We co-delivered the Faith Sector Information Session with Communities Prepared, strengthening the role of faith organisations within London’s community resilience framework.
The session explored practical pathways for faith groups to engage more formally in preparedness, response, and recovery planning.
Find out more about London Resilient communities
PARTNER AND CROSS SECTOR ACTIVITY
Rough Sleeping
Do you want to help people who are rough sleeping during the colder months? While this is an important issue year-round, it becomes event more prominent in our minds due to freezing temperatures.
The document below, curtesy of the London Resilience Unit, contains information on what you can do to make a difference this winter.
Active Bystander Training
Protection Approaches and London Plus are running this free Active Bystander Training, which will help you understand what to do if you witness identity-based harassment or violence.
Combatting identity-based harassment and violence is vital for increased resilience in our communities. London is a diverse space for all, protecting those who fall victim to this kind of abuse is more important than ever.
The training will take place online on January 20, 2026.