Faith, planning and changing multiculturalism: constructing religious buildings in London’s suburbia

ABSTRACT

This paper draws on recent research on the construction of new religious buildings by diverse faith communities in the London Borough of Ealing in West London to compare the navigation of local planning processes in the realization of new permanent structures for worship. While existing research emphasizes barriers for minority faith communities, this paper suggests that faith communities are successful local actors able to navigate local planning governance particularly through accumulated expertise and social capital networks, although there are marked differences in capacity and experience between different faith groups. There is also evidence of the mobilization of narratives of “instutionalised multiculturalism” embedded in local policy documents in support for faith communities, but ongoing on-going austerity cuts since 2010 have reduced the capacity of the local state to support projects. Finally, the paper suggests that these planning processes indicate changing ideas of the nature of the suburbs and suburban multiculturalism.

KEYWORDS:

• Religion
• ethnicity
• suburbs
• planning
• multiculturalism
• places of worship

Acknowledgements

Professor Claire Dwyer (1964–2019) died as this paper was going to press. Claire was a great colleague, teacher and friend. Ethnic and racial studies were central to her research career in social geography, from her PhD on the identities of young British Muslim women, through work on transnationalism and diaspora cultures and on faith schools in the UK, to this work, part of a wider project on the creative capacities of suburban religious communities. A longer tribute can be found at: https://www.ucl.ac.uk/geography/claire-dwyer/

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

ORCID

Claire Dwyer http://orcid.org/0000-0002-9966-440X

David Gilbert http://orcid.org/0000-0002-2755-9221

Notes

1 Minutes of Ealing Planning Committee, 30 January 2013.

2 Interview with Tariq Usmani, Chair of West London Islamic Centre trustees, 29 May 2015.

3 Interview with Jonathan Cross, PAD Architects, 12 April 2016.

4 Planning Inspector, quoted in Planning Application Report to Ealing Planning Committee, 7 July 2004, 2.

5 Planning Officer’s report to Planning Committee, 27 July 2011.

6 A Grade II listing indicates a building of special interest legally protected from being demolished, extended or significantly altered without special permission from the local planning authority.

7 Interview with Paul Levy, IPC Pastor, 15 December 2015.

8 A Grade II* listing indicates a particularly important buildings of more than special interest, with stronger expectation of protection in place.

9 P/2015/1077 OFFICERS REPORT.

10 Richard Buxton, Pastor ECC, 19 February 2016.

11 Planners recommendation to Ealing Planning Committee, 17 December 2014, 18.

12 Interview with founder trustee, WLIC, 23 April 2015.

13 Interview with Mr Rafnasingham, Chair of Trustees, SKTA Temple, 9 July 2016.

14 Interview with former planning professional, Ealing Council, 15 January 2018.

15 Interview with Mark Pender, Planning consultant, West London Islamic Centre, 3 March 2016.

16 Interview with Head of Strategic Planning, Ealing Council, 15 December 2015.

17 Interview with former planning professional, Ealing Council, 15 January 2018.

Additional information

Funding

Research for this paper was funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council as part of the research project: “Design, material culture and popular creativity in suburban faith communities”. Grant Reference [AH/M001636/1].