Peter Landman reports from the September meeting of Newham Council as religious leaders visit homeless project


One of the organisations in the frontline of the homeless crisis is the charity Your Place in Canning Town, which on 20 September hosted a delegation of religious leaders who came to see how they are providing targeted support to homeless people.
The delegation (pictured above) included Cardinal Vincent Nichols (Archbishop of Westminster), Imam Dr Sayed Ali Abbas Razawi (Chief Imam and Director General at Scottish Ahlul Bayt Society), Fr Alexander Masters, Fr John Armitage, Miriam Cakebread and David Ryall (Santa Marta Group), Sian Thomas-Cullinan (Director at Caritas Brentwood), Gunther Jancke (TELCO Citizens UK), Maulana Ali Raza Rizvi, Imam Qari Asim, Imam Ibrahim Mogra, and Rokshana Fiaz.
Your Place provides support to solve homelessness one person at a time and the visitors met with residents on their tour of the shared kitchen, dining room, gardens, and the award-winning Hope Street project.
Although the headlines around Newham focus on how the Borough has the highest rates of homelessness in the UK, it is also one of the most diverse boroughs in the country and this is reflected in Your Place’s resident base. Amanda Dubarry, Chief Executive at Your Place, said: “We appreciate the support of different faiths, reflecting the wide range of people living and working with us.”
For more information contact Zulfiqar. ali@newham.gov.uk or Isobel Scott, Your Place by email at isobel.scott@ your-place.org.uk or by telephone on 07983641595.
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