Supporting Interfaith Week for Schools 2025

Interfaith is an area that I am very passionate about, and I was thrilled to be working with several other renowned organisations and charities in the field writes Stacey Burman

This year I was delighted to have been asked to have been involved with the Faith & Belief Forum to support Schools’ Interfaith Week, working with representatives from its national partners, including NASACRE, RE Today and the RE Hubs and AREIAC. Interfaith is an area that I am very passionate about, and I was thrilled to be working with several other renowned organisations and charities in the field. It began with an initial on-line planning meeting to form a steering group of volunteers to discuss what had gone well the previous year, and what we wanted to achieve this November. We were keenly aware of the need to focus on encouraging pupils to foster respect and develop positive working relationships and strong links with others of different backgrounds and beliefs, especially following the devastating events in the Middle East which were reverberating in our local communities in the UK.

We therefore chose the theme of ‘Community: Together We Serve’ and following a call out to our national partners and other organisations we were able to collate a vast array of ideas and resource to share on the website.

Samples of these were then selected and incorporated into a fully resourced ‘package’ of sessions for schools, partially inspired by some of the ideas Sarah March had started to draft. A carefully sequenced learning journey was devised, so that the key concepts of ‘community’ and ‘service’ could be explored through a range of religious and non-religious perspectives using an enquiry approach that was matched to specific age groups so that all could engage. Teachers have been very appreciative of this planning, so they could just pick up and deliver these materials to their pupils either during form time, assemblies or in lessons, and I was glad we could model a strong pedagogy which is at the heart of all FBF support, programmes and materials, and is reflective of the Religions and Worldviews Approach as a long term example for schools everywhere.

Pupils all over the UK have been exploring responses to the questions ‘how can we learn from each other?’ and ‘what skills are required for interfaith dialogue?’ before considering the role kindness plays and how serving a community can bring people together. These sessions have helped pupils to consider how the sharing of food can be at the heart of a community for celebrations as well as charity, and schools were encouraged and supported with further guidance, materials and ideas to hold an interfaith celebration event for themselves to help bring their local communities together. Conscious that to be successful, teachers would need the support of their headteachers, a special message was also sent to SACREs to share with their schools to promote Interfaith Week, as well as asking if they knew of any schools’ events in their areas or any they might be running themselves.

Pupils all over the UK have been exploring responses to the questions ‘how can we learn from each other?’ and ‘what skills are required for interfaith dialogue?’ before considering the role kindness plays and how serving a community can bring people together. These sessions have helped pupils to consider how the sharing of food can be at the heart of a community for celebrations as well as charity, and schools were encouraged and supported with further guidance, materials and ideas to hold an interfaith celebration event for themselves to help bring their local communities together. Conscious that to be successful, teachers would need the support of their headteachers, a special message was also sent to SACREs to share with their schools to promote Interfaith Week, as well as asking if they knew of any schools’ events in their areas or any they might be running themselves.

But it didn’t end there! In addition to arranging a series of online webinars and events for teachers, Advisors and pupils, this year the Faith Belief Forum also planned a national poetry competition, encouraging pupils of all ages to show their understanding of the key concepts (Community, Togetherness, Service) following reflection on their learning during Interfaith Week. Personally, I am really looking forward to seeing some of these entries which might not only inspire others, but demonstrate the importance of our work.

Much effort has gone into making the Interfaith Week for Schools a success, and is always an immense pleasure working with Carrie, Amy, and now with Sarah, who are just as enthusiastic as I am! Supported with the new intern Abimbola, I am really proud of the materials we have been able to put together. I remember first speaking to Carrie about IFW following the sad demise of the IFN: I knew then that FBF was so perfectly placed to support collaborative working across the RE spectrum and were the perfect champions to take it forwards. I am not the only one who sincerely hopes FBF will continue to receive the funding to keep this going so successfully in future years.

Stacey Burman