Consortium

for stronger lgbt+ communities

17-24-30 National Hate Crime Awareness Week

Creating Sanctuary. Building Healthy and Safer Churches

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Sir Elton John endorses Creating Sanctuary Conference:
“The failure of many churches to welcome, accept and include LGBTQ+ people creates stigma, loneliness, fear and denial, causing lasting damage to their wellbeing and mental health.
What is more, the scale and severity of these problems are of the gravest concern. We need safe and affirming churches as places of sanctuary for all.
I applaud all that organisations such as Oasis are doing to champion real inclusion and to engage church leaders and others with the issues of safeguarding LGBT+ people. This work is urgent in order to protect all those who are vulnerable because of their sexual or gender identity.” Sir Elton John

Speakers include Dave Moreton, a church leader dismissed from the RAF in the 1970s for being gay; and Jayne Ozanne, a member of the Church of England Synod who underwent conversion therapy resulting in hospitalisation for a mental breakdown.
The online conference aims to engage church leaders and others with the issues of safeguarding LGBT+ people in their churches by exploring:

How to understand statutory guidance and the law
How to embed safe practice in churches – understanding safeguarding and the promotion of welfare
What good pastoral care looks like
How we build healthy and safer churches
Get your free ticket.
https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/creating-sanctuary-tickets-119402418849

Lifetime Achievement Award

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Mark Healey, founder of 17-24-30 National Hate Crime Awareness Week was awarded a lifetime achievement award at the National NO2H8 Crime Awards this year.

Mark was recognised for his work organising the April Acts of Remembrance (marking the anniversaries of the London Nail Bomb attacks on Brixton, Brick Lane and Soho each year) and National Hate Crime Awareness Week in October.

Mark said “This lifetime achievement award recognised the work that I and others have done to say that there is no place for hate in the UK. I want to thank everyone who have supported our campaign and encourage more people to join us next year.”