In Camden we’re proud of our diversity – it’s what makes Camden special. Our borough has a long history of coming together to stand up against injustice and bring about change. We want to make Camden a place where everyone has a chance to succeed and where nobody gets left behind. One of our ambitions for the future of the borough is for it to be a place where we actively tackle injustice and inequality, creating safe, strong and open communities where everyone can contribute. As part of this, we are a ‘borough of sanctuary’, a place where everyone is welcome and where we acknowledge that new arrivals enrich Camden and the UK. Together we are creating a place that works for everyone and where everyone has a voice.

JW3 – Jewish Community Centre London is the UK’s flagship Jewish Community Centre, the only such public venue for Jewish arts, culture, learning and community of its kind in the country – open to all, regardless of race, religion, belief, gender, sexuality, ability or age.

In 2022 over 100,000 people have come to JW3 for more than 100 different activities each week, with many more accessing the programmes online. The diverse programme includes adult education, language classes, theatre and musical performances, youth activities, film, family events and social impact programmes.

JW3’s Vision: A vibrant, diverse, unified British-Jewish community, inspired by and engaged with Jewish arts, culture, learning and life.

JW3’s Mission: To increase the quality, variety and volume of Jewish conversation in London and beyond.

Layla Madanat is a freelance creative producer, artist and activist. She combines artistic and socially engaged approaches to create live relationships between arts projects and social justice causes. Since graduating with a Master’s in Gender, Development, and Globalisation from LSE in 2019, she has been freelancing across the arts and social justice sectors as a producer, director, dramaturg and researcher.

As a Producer, she is part of the Stage One Bridge the Gap cohort, and most recently produced Mahad Ali’s My Brother’s Keeper at Theatre503. As a Director, she was most recently the Assistant Director on Hakawatis at Shakespeare’s Globe, following a year-long term in 2021/22 as Peter Hall Fellow and resident director at the Rose Theatre Kingston. She has worked in research for social impact organisations such as CEASE UK (Centre to End All Sexual Exploitation) and Spark Insights.

Layla was previously Assistant Producer and Assistant to the Artistic Director on Little Amal’s walk across Europe in 2021.

Ramadan Tent Project is an award-winning charity established in 2013 with a mission of bringing communities together and developing the understanding of Ramadan. Ramadan Tent Project organises the annual Ramadan Festival, which is a collection of artistic, cultural, creative events to inspire and engage audiences from all backgrounds, in addition to the UK’s largest community event in Ramadan, Open Iftar.

The City of London Corporation is the governing body of the Square Mile dedicated to a vibrant and thriving City, supporting a diverse and sustainable London within a globally-successful UK.

The City of London Corporation’s Destination City initiative is transforming the Square Mile’s leisure offer, creating a leading destination for UK and international visitors, workers, and residents to enjoy.

With a £2.5 million annual investment from the City Corporation, Destination City will drive the Square Mile’s recovery from the pandemic and deliver an exciting events programme, including outdoor festivals featuring music, art, education, sport, and wellness.

http://www.cityoflondon.gov.uk

Bloomberg Philanthropies invests in more than 570 cities and over 160 countries around the world to ensure better, longer lives for the greatest number of people. The organization focuses on five key areas for creating lasting change: the Arts, Education, Environment, Government Innovation and Public Health.

We are the national library of the United Kingdom and give access to the world’s most comprehensive research collection. We provide information services to academic, business, research and scientific communities.

Our collection of over 170 million items includes artefacts from every age of written civilisation. We keep the nation’s archive of printed and digital publications, adding around three million new items to our collection every year.

We have many books, but we have so much more. Our London and Yorkshire sites have everything from newspapers to sound recordings, patents, prints and drawings, maps and manuscripts. Our inspiring exhibitions interpret these collections and bring their stories to the public.

Choose Love does whatever it takes to provide refugees and displaced people with everything from lifesaving search and rescue boats to food and legal advice. In 7 years they have helped over 4 million people in over 30 countries. They are currently working to support the hundreds of thousands of people whose lives have been devastated by the recent earthquakes in Türkiye and Syria. The Amal fund specifically supports Choose Love’s work with children and young people – ensuring education, shelter, legal assistance, medical care and much more is available to forcibly displaced children all over the world.

Dishoom breaks down barriers, just as the old Irani cafés of Bombay did. They were the first places where people of any culture, class or religion could break bread together. And shared spaces and experiences mean less violence and less hatred. During Partition, Bombay was spared the bloodshed of Delhi and Calcutta, thanks in part to shared spaces like Irani cafés.

Today, more than ever, we believe that breaking down barriers is hugely important work. We get Muslims and non-Muslims to celebrate Eid, and Hindus and non-Hindus to celebrate Diwali. We tie Knots of Protection on each other. We bring people from all cultures and all walks of life together in our restaurants, and we feed millions of children.

Leadenhall Market is a buzzy, beautiful and airy market in the heart of the City of London, that boasts a unique selection of boutique shops, restaurants and bars. It is a hidden gem – both outdoors and covered – with a rich history dating back to Roman London. The current stunning wrought iron and glass architecture was built in 1881, and has featured in films ranging from Harry Potter to Tomb Raider.

Visit this iconic London landmark, an ideal spot for shopping, drinking and dining in the heart of the Square Mile.

One of the most exciting City developments, Paternoster Square provides some 70,000m² of office space, retail outlets and cafes.

The Square can trace its origins to medieval Paternoster Row, where the clergy of St Paul’s once walked holding their rosary beads and reciting the ‘Paternoster’, or Lord’s Prayer (Paternoster translates as ‘Our Father’).

Soon, the area was a hub for peddlers of spiritual goods – such as rosaries and psalters (psalm books) – who relied on the passing trade of pilgrims visiting the old St Paul’s Cathedral. Mercers, stationers and lace-makers joined the mix, and the area remained a place of general business until the Great Fire of 1666.

After the fire’s destruction of much of the surrounding property, the stationers returned, the publishers moved in, and the taverns and coffee houses (including the famous Chapter coffee house) that sprung up nearby, played host to famous authors including Oliver Goldsmith, Thomas Chatterton and Charlotte Brontë.

At the same time, the Square itself – a large open space – became the site of Newgate Meat Market, and remained so until the Central Meat Market at Smithfield opened in 1868. In the winter of 1940, St Paul’s was bombed and the area was destroyed for a second time (several million books were lost in one night when the booksellers’ shops came under fire).

A modernist retail and office development rose up out of the ashes in the 1960s but soon fell out of popularity, with many of the units left vacant in the 1970s.

A number of proposals to rebuild the Square were put forward and rejected. It was not until the Mitsubishi Estate Company commissioned Whitfield Partners in 1995 to create a master plan for a new development, which addressed both the heritage and the commercial requirements of the area, that redevelopment became a reality. The new development restores the lines of the ancient streets surrounding the Square and reclaims the public open space that is the Square itself.

 

We are a team of people who love and look after six of the most wonderful palaces in the world.

We create space for spirits to stir and be stirred. We want everyone to feel welcome and accepted. We tell stories about the monarchs you know, and the lives you don’t. We let people explore and we set minds racing.

We are a charity, and your support gives the palaces a future, for everyone.

Amy Hodge is currently in post-production for her BFI/Film London short The Date by Bethan Marlow. She and Bethan are under commission by FilmNation to co-create an original TV series exploring consent.

Amy’s recent production of Fantastically Great Women Who Changed The World won UK Theatre Award 2022 for Best Show for Families and Young Audiences and her production of Mr Gum and The Dancing Bear – The Musical! at the National Theatre was nominated for an Olivier Award for Best Family Show 2020. She has directed in many other producing houses across the UK including The Globe, The Royal Exchange and The Young Vic.

Amy is currently Artistic Associate at the Roald Dahl Story Company. Between 2015-18 she was Associate Director at Headlong Theatre, she was Associate at The National Theatre Studio from 2013-14 and recipient of the Jerwood Directors Award 2008.

Supported using public funding by Arts Council England

At Barley, we deliver award-winning social purpose communications. We provide strategic communications advice, lead high-impact behaviour change and engagement programmes, run integrated PR and media relations campaigns and public consultations. We use insight to refresh brands, build reputation and create stunning content across all media channels.

London Borough Faiths Network is an active network of local religious and intercultural practitioners working across London.

Often big cities present personal challenges; loneliness, lack of sense of community or logistical hurdles can make if difficult to know where to go or who to turn to. Ireland is regularly referred to as the land of a thousand welcomes, and here at the London Irish Centre we aim to bring that welcoming spirit to everything we do.

The London Irish Centre has served the Irish community in London since it was first established in 1954 and we continue to offer a range of services to people within the Irish community, some of whom have attended the Centre for many years. Our heritage is important to us, but we are also focused on present and future needs.

Aligned to our core values, the London Irish Centre is sensitive and responsive to the needs of all people, and we want to extend our services to other communities as part of an inclusive, multicultural approach with the aim of building resilient and cohesive neighbourhoods.

MATTHEW XIA is the award-winning Artistic Director of ATC (Actors Touring Company). He was previously Associate Artistic Director at the Royal Exchange Theatre, Manchester, (where he established OPEN EXCHANGE, an artist development scheme for over 400 next generation theatre-makers); Director-in-Residence at The Liverpool Everyman & Playhouse; and Associate Director at Theatre Royal Stratford East. He was Associate Artist at the Nottingham Playhouse alongside James Graham and Amanda Whittington.

Matthew has directed some of the UK’s most talented actors, including Daniel Kaluuya, Cynthia Erivo, Maxine Peake, David Haig, Samuel Barnett, Matt Henry, Karl Collins, Martina Laird, Christopher Colquhoun, Malachi Kirby, David Moorst, Natasha J Barnes, Yolanda Kettle, Erin Doherty, and Joseph Quinn.

Directing includes: HEY DUGGEE – THE LIVE THEATRE SHOW (Kenny Wax Family Entertainment/Cuffe & Taylor); the Fringe First award winning FEELING AFRAID AS IF SOMETHING TERRIBLE IS GOING TO HAPPEN (FMP/Roundabout); RICE (ATC/Orange Tree); THE WIZ (Ameena Hamid Productions/Hope Mill/BBC Big Night of Musicals), FAMILY TREE (GDIF/ATC); 846 LIVE (Theatre Royal Stratford East/GDIF); AMSTERDAM (ATC/Orange Tree/Plymouth Theatre Royal); BLOOD KNOT (Orange Tree); EDEN (Hampstead Theatre); ONE NIGHT IN MIAMI… (Nottingham Playhouse/Bristol Old Vic/HOME); INTO THE WOODS & FRANKENSTEIN (Royal Exchange Theatre); WISH LIST (Royal Exchange Theatre/Royal Court); SHEBEEN (Nottingham Playhouse/Theatre Royal Stratford East); SLEEPING BEAUTY (Theatre Royal Stratford East); DUBLIN CAROL (Sherman Theatre); BLUE/ORANGE, THE SOUND OF YELLOW (Young Vic); SIZWE BANZI IS DEAD (Genesis Future Director Award Winner – Young Vic/Eclipse); THE BLACKS (Co-Director, Theatre Royal Stratford East); I WAS LOOKING AT THE CEILING AND THEN I SAW THE SKY (Co-Director, Theatre Royal Stratford East/The Barbican); SUCKERPUNCH BOOM SUITE (The Barbican/NitroBEAT).

Matthew has worked with an array of renowned writers as a director and a dramaturg, including; Joe Penhall, Vikki Stone, Arinze Kene, April D’Angelis, Katherine Soper, David Levi-Addai, Yasmin Joseph, Mojisola Adebayo, and Nessah Murty. He has been a respected panellist for the Evening Standard Future Fund, Yale Drama Series, the Alfred Fagon Award, BEAM, the Bruntwood Prize and most recently the Eurovision Song Contest!

DJ/Composing/Sound Design includes: Award winning Hip-Hop show on BBC 1XTRA (DJ); LONDON PARALYMPICS OPENING CEREMONY (DJ); THE PEOPLE ARE SINGING (Royal Exchange); FREE RUN (Underbelly); THAT’S THE WAY TO DO IT (TimeWontWait); PASS THE BATON and BOLERO REMIXED (New London Orchestra); DA BOYZ, FAMILY MAN, THE SNOW QUEEN, HANSEL & GRETEL, MEDEA, and SQUID (Theatre Royal Stratford East).

Matthew is a founding member of Act for Change. In 2019, he was awarded an Honorary Doctorate from the University of the Arts London for his efforts to make theatre universally accessible by working to promote minority groups as theatre leaders, makers and consumers.

The Lynk Up Crew (LUC) members are young advisers to the Mayor. They contribute to shaping policy and represent the often-unheard voices of young Londoners in the 7-15 year old age group. They are a reflection of modern day London and its diversity, with young people coming from a cross section of different areas, cultural backgrounds and religious beliefs. The LUC members come from an array of life experiences and lived different personal challenges. They meet once a month to discuss issues important to them, as well as attend and contribute to events in London. The LUC regularly feeds back to the Mayor with solutions and ideas around the issues its members are exploring on behalf of other children.

Refugee Community Kitchen was founded in 2015 by four friends & North London residents in response to the needs of Refugees in Northern France. They set up field kitchens to welcome displaced people seeking safety with nutritious, warm food. In 2016 after serving millions of meals in Northern France they started outreach services in London and Edinburgh with kitchens run solely by volunteers dedicated to making food accessible to everyone made with love. Today they are supporting many Refugee, homeless and youth projects in London and still giving out thousands of nourishing meals all served without judgment on the streets of the UK and Northern France.