Faith, Cohesion 
and Community 
Development 
Faith and its role in civil society have become central to policy debates around 
cohesion and integration. This has been reflected in key government policy documents 
which recognise not only the contribution of faith based and inter faith organisations 
Summary 
of an 
evaluation 
report 

to cohesion but also their contribution to civil renewal and service delivery. 

However, there is still concern about the value of the contributions that faith based and inter faith 
organisations can make.They are assumed by many to be inward looking, shunning contact with non-faith 
and other faith groups. 

The evaluation of the Faith Communities Capacity Building Fund (FCCBF) shows that as long as they are 
viewed as a distinct part of, and not separate from, the wider voluntary and community sector, local 
faith based and inter faith organisations can make substantial contributions to community 
cohesion, civil renewal and grass roots community development. 

The evaluation found that: 

. Many of the organisations funded through FCCBF provided local community spaces 
to local users. These spaces were valued beyond the activities and services provided 
by the organisations. 
. Inter faith initiatives were seen to create new kinds of discussion. They helped 
people understand the changes that were happening in their lives. 
. Not being able to speak English was a barrier to empowerment and 
participation for some female respondents. 
. Spaces where women could speak their own first language provided important 
support networks. 
. Funded organisations were a focal point of active engagement and participation for young 
people. Within funded organisations participants felt empowered and this translated to a better 
perception of their ability to affect change in the local area. 
. Users of single faith organisations funded by FCCBF were frequently from diverse religious backgrounds. 
. Funded organisations assisted with the provision of social services to socially excluded members of 
society.Parts of the population were only accessible through single faith organisations. 
. The world view and motivations of faith based organisations were distinct from secular organisations 
and government.However, there were overlaps including the commitment to empowerment, 
participation and serving the community. 

What is the Faith Communities Capacity Building Fund? 

CDF is administering FCCBF for the Cohesion and Faiths Unit of Communities and Local Government. 
The fund has two key priorities: capacity building and inter faith activity. The purpose of funding capacity 
building is to strengthen groups’ organisational capabilities to enable them to sustain themselves in order 
to play a fuller part in civil society and community cohesion, and engage more effectively with public 
authorities. Inter faith activity involves programmes designed to bring people of different faiths together 
to promote mutual understanding, respect and co-operation. This contributes to community cohesion 
through the development of partnerships between faith groups, and between faith groups and the 
wider community. 

Building capacity and promoting cohesion within the faith sector 

Between 2006 and 2007, 576 organisations were funded through the first round of the Faith Communities 
Capacity Building Fund.184 organisations were funded for large grants up to £50,000 and 392 were 
funded for small grants up to £5,000.338 organisations were funded for capacity building and 238 for 
inter faith working. The total amount distributed in round 1 was £7.617m. 

Diversity of the faith sector 

Funded organisations were highly diverse. Some were small religious institutions looking to extend their 
capacity to serve their community more widely.Others had the primary function of providing social 
services. Some organisations were working from a single faith perspective, some from a multi faith 
perspective, and some from a non-faith perspective but carrying out inter faith work. The size and 
structures of the funded organisations were also mixed. The levels of paid employment within the faith 
organisations varied greatly as did the levels of volunteering. 

Capacity building 

Although capacity building was limited by short time frames, funded organisations pointed to significant 
gains made possible by the Fund. In particular, organisations built capacity through bringing in or retaining 
experienced staff members, buying capital assets, developing policies and procedures, and building their 
networks and profile. Additionally, many organisations built their capacity to deliver specific activities or 
events and reach out to wider user groups. 

Inter faith working 

Inter faith forums or councils were seen to respond quickly and authoritatively to major events, sending 
reasoned messages to members of particular faith groups.Local inter faith initiatives helped people 
understand the changes that were happening in their lives and provided opportunities to cross social and 
cultural boundaries in ways not possible in other settings. 

Providing local community spaces 

Organisations funded through FCCBF often provided local community spaces to local users. In many cases, 
users valued the provision of the space itself beyond the activities and services provided by the organisation. 
Local knowledge was the major resource in developing the potential and quality of these spaces. 

Spaces for expression and empowerment 

Funded organisations acted as focal points of active engagement. Active engagement occurred both 
within the organisations and between participants of the organisations and the local area.Participants 
were empowered through their involvement in the funded organisations. This translated to a better 
perception of the local area and participants’ ability to affect change. 


Spaces of support 

Informal and formal spaces were important in allowing people to confirm or create networks of support. 
Outside of the formal activities and services provided by the organisation, users supported each other on 
issues such as language difficulties, work permits and access to services. 

Safe spaces 

Fear and conflict were common themes of everyday life for many young people.However, what some 
young people most enjoyed about FCCBF funded organisations was the chance to ‘stay out of trouble’ and 
relax in a space that was removed from the stresses of ‘the real world’. 

Single faith organisations 

Members of single faith groups were often from different parts of the same town, of different ages, 
different sexes, different sub-religious groups or different national or sub-national ethnic groups. 
Additionally, the users of many groups were from diverse religious backgrounds. 

Some parts of the population are reportedly only easily accessible though single faith 
organisations. In some parts of the country single faith organisations were the 
only local organisations providing social services to the local population. 

Language and being understood 

Not being able to speak English was the reason why some women 
could not get involved in decision making in their funded organisation 
or their local community. Some women related their inability to 
communicate in English to their own isolation, low self confidence and 
mental health concerns.However, some women also valued funded 
organisations because they provided spaces where they could speak 
their own first language. 

Relationships between the faith sector and 
the government 


Respondents were critical of the government’s top down engagement of the faith 
sector and advocated more bottom-up participation. The respondents felt that they were 
often engaged with in a tokenistic and superficial way, rather than as active participants in local 
debates.Faith sector organisations outlined their historic cynicism of government funding. 
They described how in the past some organisations had been obliged to hide the faith part of their 
identity.Local authority respondents highlighted worries about the faith sector proselytising with 
public money and failing to deliver on equalities. 

Funding the faith sector 

Organisations’ experience of fundraising varied greatly. While some organisations were experienced 
fundraisers, had a clear strategy and would not be compromised by funding that they felt did not fit their 
ethos, others were locked into chasing funding. 

Funders were seen to place high demands on small organisations.Many respondents felt they 
were asked to ‘jump through hoops’ for relatively small amounts of money. They felt that long-term 
objectives needed long-term funding.Three-year funding was cited as the minimum acceptable. 
Chasing short-term funding was felt to damage organisations’ legitimacy, compromise their character, 
and erode their vision. 


Recommendations 

. The diversity of the faith sector should be considered at all times when developing policy that affects 
the sector. It should also be considered when determining funding strategies for the sector. 
. The development of the faith sector should not be viewed in isolation from the rest of the voluntary 
and community sector with which it shares many similarities. 
. Policy makers should also consider the local context and draw on local knowledge held in organisations, 
user groups and the local area when devising policy and funding strategies for the faith sector. 
. Policy makers should consider that individuals’ involvement in faith based and inter faith 
organisations can provide opportunities to cross social and cultural boundaries in ways not 
possible in other settings. Diverse space provision encourages diverse interactions. 
. Policy makers should continue to support separate facilities for women where necessary to 
ensure that women can participate in civil renewal and empowerment activities. 
. Attention should be given to the provision and signposting of quality, safe and engaging 
spaces for young people. 
. Providing the means for people to learn English should be encouraged.However, it should not 
detract from the importance of maintaining places where people can speak their own first language. 
. The internal diversity of groups should be valued.Groups should not be labelled as ‘single identity’. 
. ‘Single group’ funding should be continued where this strengthens the ability of some vulnerable or 
marginalised people to feel properly part of society, where it increases their ability to engage with 
society, or where it provides essential services. 
. Renewed guidance to local authorities needs to be provided on faith literacy and engaging with 
faith communities. 
. Three years funding should be given as a minimum. 
. Capacity building support should be available for inexperienced faith sector organisations in receipt 
of funding. 
About the evaluation 

Four evaluation methods were used to collect data on FCCBF round 1. These were: area profiles; the 
survey of women; the survey of young people; and, the self completion questionnaire. 

The area profiles used 71 semi-structured interviews to gather in-depth qualitative information from 
service users, project workers and statutory officials across England and Wales. Additionally, one focus 
group on inter faith working and another on capacity building were held. 

For the survey of women and the survey of young people (participating in the FCCBF organisations 
funded specifically to work with women or young people respectively), structured interviews were 
carried out by a team of skilled researchers. Interviewers interviewed 178 young people and 155 women. 

The self completion questionnaires were the longitudinal element of the evaluation. All organisations 
received a questionnaire at the beginning (wave 1) and the end (wave 2) of the funded period which ran 
from April 06 – April 07. The data presented in this report comes from round 1, wave 1 which had a 
response rate of 70%. 

Further information 

The full report Faith,Cohesion and Community Development: An evaluation report from the Faith Communities 

Capacity Building Fund by Malcolm James is published by CDF, priced at £14.95 and is available to buy 

from CDF, Unit 5, Angel Gate, 320–326 City Road, London EC1V 2PT, email: publications@cdf.org.uk 

tel: 020 7833 1772. This summary and the full report can be downloaded at www.cdf.org.uk