Calderdale Council has signed a covenant with local faith groups to establish a working relationship between the two.
The idea was introduced by the All Party Parliamentary Group on Faith and Society in 2014.
Calderdale is one of the first local authorities in the country to adopt a Faith Covenant. The agreement sets out a number of commitments for the council to work with faith groups, including: building relationships and trust with all faith groups, particularly Calderdale Interfaith Council; encouraging faith groups and their members to be involved in the reshaping and redesign of local services and sharing training and learning opportunities with faith communities.
In return, Calderdale’s faith organisations pledged to actively work with the council on a number of their own commitments, which include seeking opportunities to bring communities together and taking part in consultations to help shape the delivery of services.
Calderdale Council said it had a good record of interfaith work, on a number of issues, including helping to maintain strong community relations.
The council said that the signing of the Faith Covenant formalised this relationship, and demonstrated their commitment to faith communities in the borough.
“I was delighted to be involved in the signing of the Calderdale Faith Covenant, which builds upon the partnership working arrangements already in place between the Council and local faith groups,” said leader of Calderdale Council, Cllr Tim Swift.
“Faith groups have an important role to play in their communities, and through this covenant we’ve been able to formally recognise our close working relationship, which is mutually beneficial.”
