JESUS LOVES LEICESTERSHIRE

A big musical performance by a big band on a big stage this morning, in front of the big TV on Humberstone Gate. The LED above the performers says "Jesus loves Leicestershire": I do hope so!

LEICESTER SPEAKS: 2

At Leicester Adult Education College, Wellington Street, this morning for the latest meeting of the group planning Leicester Speaks - our city's iteration of Local Democracy Week. This morning we're concentrating on the Big Launch and promotion of the event. Smaller number today, but everyone has something strong and positive to contribute. As well as Parmjit Basra, from Leicester City Council Adult Skills and Learning Service, who is leading the project, there's Jiten Anand and Shakti Sharma (TouchRainbow Productions), Ted Cassidy (Head of Partnerships, De Montfort University; Chair, Phoenix Square Film & Digital Media Centre), Bez Killeen (Active Involvement Youth Worker, Leicester City Council) and Kate Merrett (Office and Projects Manager, LeicestHer Day Trust)

The website is well advanced (though will be getting a major overhaul in the week ahead), a brochure has been designed (which will bear the Council of Faiths logo alongside those of other stakeholders and partners) and we discussed some other promotional materials to reach as wide a range of people as possible. We talked about a launch event too, though I won't spill the beans on that right now. Suffice to say that our launch would come on the third day in a row that the city centre will have been used as the site for some public event (proposed demonstration by the English Defence League on Saturday 9, Leicester Marathon on Sunday 10).

All I'll say just now is that the launch of Leicester Speaks will surely be the smallest of these and should cause much less disruption.

National Inter Faith Week 2010: aims

Lots of time this morning for thinking about the forthcoming National Inter Faith Week, following yesterday's welcome news that we'll be exhibiting in Highcross again. I look back over the blog to remind myself of the aims for the week, as declared by the Inter Faith Network UK:

• to strengthen good inter faith relations at all levels;
• to increase awareness of the different and distinct faith communities in the UK, in particular celebrating and building on the contribution which their members make to their neighbourhoods and to wider society;
• and to increase understanding between people of religious and non-religious belief.

Nine weeks to go - not forgetting that there's the Council of Faiths contribution to "Leicester Speaks" (AKA Local Democracy Week) to organise in the meantime!

Papal visit: how's it playing in Leicester?

Up much too early (the paper is delivered here at 0430 each morning, which combines with the occasional touch of night time hypoglaecemia to keep me out of bed), I read with interest The Guardian's coverage of the visit of Pope Benedict. I'm wryly surprised to see two of our local worthies commenting on the speech given by the Supreme Pontiff at the Palace of Holyroodhouse in Edinburgh. Suleman Nagdi, for the Federation of Muslim Organisations, and Allan Hayes, President of the Leicester Secular Society and the first humanist chaplain to the city's Lord Mayor, feature in an article entitled, "Papal visit: Linking the godless to a lack of values is wrong, say critics: Humanists, Christians, Jews and Muslims speak out for the 'common good' after pope's speech to Queen at Holyrood". As well as quoting both men at length, the article has positive things to say about them, the organisations they represent and Leicester in general.

Read the article here:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/sep/16/papal-visit-linking-godless-lack-values-wrong

To Be Creative autumn social

To the LCB Depot, Rutland Street early evening, for the autumn social gathering, "To Be Creative". A lot of "creatives" (some of them distinctly quirky - and a few who have written their areas of specialisation on their sticky badges are beyond quirky) meet to enjoy a free drink (first one only) and to discuss possible areas of collaboration. There's a decent turn out and it's nice to see some weel kent faces (as well as some nice new ones too). Kate, Claire, Lucia et al put a lot of time and effort into occasions like this and they deserve all the props going.

I stay only an hour and slink off just as the more formal presentations begin. Much as I enjoy networking, I'm now in that phase where I need to do the work that has arisen out of my earlier networking efforts!

INTER FAITH WEEK: RETURN TO HIGHCROSS

We receive confirmation from Highcross this afternoon that they're willing and able to accommodate our exhibition for a second year during Inter Faith Week (Sun 21 - Sat 27 November). Once again we'll be in the Lower Mall but near the escalators in front of John Lewis this time. What with being a week later than last year and that bit closer to the great outdoors, it's going to be that colder; but I am very glad - and rather relieved - that Highcross has said yes to our request that they put us on show a second time.

In 2009 I had little notice to get everything ready for this event: that included commissioning the exhibition; finding a designer; writing copy for the banners, a new leaflet and rebooted website; raising funds to pay for it all, getting the exhibition and supporting material produced on time; doing the necessary paperwork for Highcross; obtaining the services of volunteers to front the display; publicise the event among the faith communities and in the media... Hopefully this time round, there won't be such a rush! The main exhibition is ready, we know what kind of giveaway material worked last time and I've got contact details for those who were good with the public (and each other) last time and who (hopefully) will want to do it again.

Oh, I can hardly wait! And I mean that most sincerely folks, I really do!

my management group

Meeting of my management group this morning at the Welcome Centre. Full complement of members today, representing five of the eight religions which are members of Leicester Council of Faiths. Among the matters we consider today: the Jimi Hendrix Converse shoe controversy; our "Faiths Trail" event on the weekend just gone by; our relationship with NHS Leicester City, Leicester Partnership and the Regional Equality and Diversity Partnership; our involvement in Local Democracy Week (or "Leicester Speaks" as it's been rebranded in the local setting) and National Inter Faith Week; and the process of decamping to my new office downstairs. I've got the work space nice and tidy so I can show it off to the members of my management group today, but I can't help wondering if (unconsciously) I've worked too hard to turn it into a more efficient version of what I struggled to create at home for the better part of four years. Same colour carpet, same colour walls, same IKEA Billy bookshelf (same books for the most part). No sofa bed though - I certainly wouldn't fancy sleeping in it!

Leicester Partnership Host Organisations briefing

Attending a briefing for Leicester Partnership's Host organisations, which is regularly held two weeks or so ahead of the full meeting of the Partnership itself. This meeting, at Voluntary Action Leicester, is being done twice today, 1200-1300 and 1800-1900. I come to the latter, but I'm the only one! Philip Parkinson (Chair of Leicester Partnership) is gracious enough to give me the full briefing on the agenda etc with support from James Schadla-Hall (Project Support Officer, Performance Management and Democratic Services). We manage to fit this into half an hour, since there aren't so many questions as there would have been at the lunchtime briefing, which many of my colleagues and coworkers from the other Host Organisations attended.

Faiths Trail

Today we're making our contribution to English Heritage's open weekend, called - for our part of the world - "Discover Leicester". This is one of a small number of annual events which is helping earn the Council of Faiths a positive reputation.

I'm only able to join in at lunchtime, as I've taken Harry out to sing in the choir at St Thomas this morning. We meet Clare and Gracie outside Guru Amar Das Gurdwara in Clarendon Park Road (that's them dressed the part, in the photo above). We're there about half an hour before the coach with everyone else turns up.

We've tried to squeeze in too many visits in previous years, so this time we've cut it down from five stops to three. First was the Jain Centre, then the Central Mosque, ending up at Guru Amar Das Gurdwara for the final visit, that includes lunch.

There are 25 people on the trail, including the Lord Mayor of Leicester, Cllr Colin Hall, and his Secular Humanist Chaplain, Dr Allan Hayes. We're grateful to Ajay, the Co-ordinator at the Council of Faiths, for organising this event.

You can see photos of today's Faiths Trail on our Flickr photostream:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/leicestercounciloffaiths/sets/72157624825007277/

Leicester Speaks (1)

At Leicester Adult Education college this morning, for the steering group of Leicester Speaks (since we decided to adopt this name for the event in our city - rather than Local Democracy Week - at our last planning meeting, this is how I'll be referring to it from now on).

A good number in today: Bipin Anand (TouchRainbow Productions), Parmjit Basra (Project Officer, Leicester City Council Adult Skills and Learning Services), Max Boden (Leicestershire Chamber of Commerce), Peter Bradley (Speakers' Corner Trust), Chino Cabon (The Race Equality Centre), John Coster (Citizens' Eye Community News Agency), Perry Holmes (Director of Corporate Governance, Leicester City Council), Dee Martin (Leicestershire Centre for Integrated Living), Chris Minter (Head of Leicester City Council Adult Skills and Learning Services), Bupan Patel (Brahma Kumaris).

A few steps forward since our last meeting: we've agreed a logo (though it's still undergoing some refinement); the website has been updated and is now live (although it needs to have the rule run over it for accessibility).

We talk about the need to ensure that the whole week isn't seen as an act of tokenism; the need to involve groups and individuals who don't access information online or don't use the city's libraries; most importantly, we talk about the need to emphasise listening as much as speaking.

Find out more about Leicester Speaks:
http://www.leicesterspeaks.org/