RSPCA staff are welcomed at a Hindu Temple

24.03.11

Members of RSPCA staff were warmly welcomed by volunteers from the Gurjar Hindu Union on Tuesday, 15 March.

Staff from Horsham and Birmingham were treated to a guided tour to learn more about the Apple Tree Centre, its Temple and the work done in the community.

The Apple Tree Centre was opened last year by the Gurjar Hindu Union, a local charitable organisation that supports not just the local Hindu community but is accessible to the whole community of Crawley, West Sussex.

Engaging with ethnic communities

We have begun to work with Diverse Ethics to understand how we can better support, advise and work with communities from across England and Wales and in turn encourage more members of ethnic communities to get actively involved in working with us and supporting our work.

Dr Atul Shah from Diverse Ethics was asked to review how we communicate our activities and how improvements can be made in relation to ethnic communities. He made his presentation to staff during the visit, providing an opportunity to discuss the report’s findings.

RSPCA director of communications, David Bowles, said:

Engaging with different faith and ethnic groups is a growing part of the RSPCA’s work to improve animal welfare.

This visit is an important start of our local engagement with the Hindu community and shows how the RSPCA can develop its work in different communities throughout England and Wales.

Ashwin Soni, Gurjar Hindu Union Director, who coordinated the visit and acted as the tour guide showing staff around the Temple and the Community facilities, said:

We are delighted to host the RSPCA visit and are very keen to work with other charities, service providers and businesses to help support cultural diversity and cohesion.

Dr Shah was delighted at the response to the visit:

Diverse Ethics has really enjoyed working with the unique and compassionate charity, RSPCA, whose staff and members have a deep respect for animals.

They are keen to engage with, and learn from, the vast cultural diversity of Britain. The Hindu community at Apple Tree Centre have been exceptional hosts and visionaries. This is a clear win-win.

We now hope to begin engaging with ethnic communities up and down the country and have started regular meetings with a number of key faith groups in order to improve and share understanding of animals and faiths.

 

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