Exploring the role of faith in our modern society

On Tuesday 13 June 2023, Solent University delivered its third Civic Exchange Network on campus. Designed to bring together our local communities and provide a neutral platform for knowledge exchange and innovation, the afternoon network welcomed representatives from partners and community-based organisations including charities, educational establishments, and local businesses, exploring the role of faith in our modern society.

Hosted in collaboration with Daniel Singleton, National Executive Director of FaithAction and David Vane, Chair of Southampton Council of Faiths, the event posed a series of questions around how Solent University and communities including faith can work more collaboratively to shape future activity delivered across the city. This included identifying areas to support student wellbeing, and how communication between faith communities could be strengthened.

Daniel Inns, Deputy Head of Student Success (Wellbeing) said, "This Civic Exchange session has enabled Solent to consider more fully and hear from our communities on how Spirituality can complement and enhance our approach to wellbeing. There are many fantastic initiatives and activities taking place across the city, which are organised by communities of faith. These provide a variety of knowledge exchange opportunities, while engaging our student and staff communities in spirituality. We look forward to building on some of the ideas discussed today and further working with our faith communities”.

The afternoon also provided opportunities to highlight to our communities the range of services and societies currently available to students, plus a wide range of events which run throughout the year (including Inter Faith Week, Wilberforce Dialogue and Holocaust Memorial Day) which offer opportunities for community groups to come together and get involved. A tour of the Spark completed the event, showcasing the fantastic facilities available to both students, staff, and our residents.

Our next Civic Exchange Network will be taking place at the start of the 2023/24 academic year. If you would like to suggest a topic area or have a project or programme you would like to share, please contact us.

View all the discussions from our civic exchange network sessions here.