Faith and sport explored at unique Black Country forum
The ways to link faith and sport were explored at a specially arranged forum.
The Faith and Sport Forum brought together religious groups and sporting organisations from across the Black Country to discuss how faith and sport could link together.
The forum, the first of its kind in the region, was organised by Active Black Country and was hosted at Shri Venkateshwara (Balaji) Temple in Tividale.
Among the speakers on the day were representatives from Gura Nanak Sikh Gurdwara in Wolverhampton and Sandwell Community Hubs, speaking about the faith side and their efforts to integrate.
There were also presentations by ECB/Staffordshire Cricket and the Lawn Tennis Association (LTA), plus a question and answer panel with members of the University of Wolverhampton, Active Black Country and Street Games fielding questions from those in attendance.
After lunch, there was a chance to meet sporting and faith organisations in the marketplace and networking section.
This included organisations from sports as diverse as Bowls Association, Cycling UK, Kabaddi, Royal Yachting Association and Yoga, plus representation from all the major football clubs in the area.
The LTA also set up a mini court outside the temple for all to try the game.
Daniel Allen, the local partnership Lead Officer for Communities for Active Black Country, was the driving force behind the forum and spoke about how pleasing it was to get the different groups together.
He said: "I think for us, as an organisation, gathering what we would describe as a free audience and strategic partners, as well as places of worship and sports providers, its been really pleasing to see them get round the table.
"That was part of the challenge and very hard itself, so it's been very pleasing to bring those different sectors together to at least start the conversation and begin engagement."
