Bringing people together

The idea is to bring people together who are near neighbours in communities that are religiously and ethnically diverse, so that they can get to know each other better, build relationships of trust and collaborate together on initiatives that improve the local community they live in.

Near Neighbours has two key objectives:

• Social interaction - to develop positive relationships in multi-faith areas i.e. to help people from different faiths get to know and understand each other better

• Social action - to encourage people of different faiths and of no faith to come together for initiatives that improve their local neighbourhood.

The programme works in a number of key locations across England. We are present in the northern towns of Bury, Rochdale, Oldham and Burnley; Leeds, Bradford and Dewsbury. In the midlands we are working in Birmingham, Wolverhampton, Sandwell, Walsall and Dudley; Leicester and Nottingham. In the south we operate in Luton and across most of London.

Each of these locations is covered by one of our local hubs. These hubs act as a focal point for much of the work of the programme. We have a coordinator based at each who is connecting with local projects and developing the work of the programme.

We are also linked with a number of national partners across the programme who are providing expertise through their focused work. Our partners contribute to the programme with training, expertise and resources. Their work is developing the networks and capacity of local communities and organisations through sustainable initiatives that will continue to impact long into the future.

Who can apply?
We welcome applications from faith groups, places of worship, partnerships of different faith groups, and informal local groups comprising people of different faith groups. We also encourage applications from secular organisations that are working with faith communities.

Projects must run in one of our eligible areas - Manchester, Rochdale, Bury and Oldham. Grant amount: Between £250 and £5,000

This is supported by a small grants fund, providing seed capital for local groups and organisations who are working to bring together neighbours; to develop relationships of diverse faiths and ethnicities and also to improve their communities.