A broad cross-section of faith groups in Sharrow, Nether Edge and Broomhall met with local representatives from statutory agencies on Saturday 6th March, to explore ways of working together for the benefit of the wider community.

The event, organised by Sheffield Faiths Forum, was held at Bramall Lane after Sheffield United donated the use of their Marston and Millennium suites for this community initiative. It was attended by over 150 people from 25 faith groups and 15 local statutory agencies and organisations.

Matt Robson, Vice-Chair of Sheffield Faiths Forum, said, “It was great to see so many people from so many different communities in the area meeting together. We wanted it to be a really practical and useful event for everyone involved, so that people could start to put names to faces and know who represents the different agencies in their area.”

Chief Fire Officer Mark Smitherman said,  “We were very pleased to be involved in such an important community event - 'The Faiths Together' is a fantastic opportunity for South Yorkshire Fire & Rescue to engage with the many faith groups within our diverse community.  It enables us to raise our profile within these groups, which in turn will help us to get vital safety messages across and show that the fire service supports and actively promotes diversity.”

Sheffield City Council Leader Cllr. Paul Scriven who addressed the gathering, said, 'I'm passionate about opportunities that enable people to meet together and make new connections in the area where they live and work. This event has provided a unique opportunity for faith groups to showcase the positive contribution that they make to the area and to the vibrancy of the City. I hope this will be the first of many events and initiatives involving faith communities and other agencies and be a catalyst for new partnerships to be developed within the area in the future.”

One of the presentations showcased was the recent 'Faith, Food and Friendship' project which involved faith leaders and members of Usmania Masjid & Education Centre and Highfield Trinity Church meeting together over food. “It's Sheffield Faith's Forum projects like these that we wanted to showcase at the event, to inspire other groups and agencies in the area about what is possible when groups meet together to share their common good values for the benefit of the wider community”, said Matt Robson.

Pastor Terence Williams from Sheffield New Life Church, who runs a regular 'Friendly Hour' coffee morning at Lansdowne Flats in Sharrow, said, “We found out how the agencies can help us to help the people in our community and what other faith groups offer for the local community.”

The event was supported and funded by Sheffield Faiths Forum, South Yorkshire Fire & Rescue, South Yorkshire Police, Sheffield City Council's South and Central Community Assemblies, Sharrow Community Forum and Sheffield United's community programme The United Initiative. Sue Beeley, Head of Community at The United Initiative, said “Any initiative which develops community cohesion and social inclusion can only be of benefit to the city, so we applaud the work of Sheffield Faiths Forum and what it aims to achieve.”

(Image: – Faiths Together Event March 6^th 2010 - (left to right):Revd Ian Wallis, Margaret Grant, Mashood Nazir, Superintendent Peter Norman, Shahbaz Ramzan, Councillor Paul Scriven, Rebecca Maddox, Group Manager Steve Makepeace, Mohammed Azad, Inspector Craig Patchett, Yasmin Saddique, Noah Nazir, Brendan Packenham, Mahbub Choudhury, Naveed Babar, Revd Phillip Borkett.)