Safer Communities Project - Diversity Without Division

Join our ongoing civic dialogue to see why diversity is essential to create a stronger and safer community.

The UK is facing a sharp rise in hate crimes, particularly targeting religious and ethnic minorities. In the UK, over 115,000 hate crimes were recorded, from which over 10% were religious hate crimes. This highlights the urgent need for youth-led education, dialogue, and cooperation to build safer, more united cities.

Youth Empowerment & Peace Working Group (YEPW) is an initiative of the International Peace Youth Group (IPYG) — a global youth organisation working with over 1,000 partner groups in 119 countries to promote community-based peacebuilding and inclusion. From last autumn, IPYG UK has been hosting YEPW dialogues across the UK, creating a shared platform for young people, educators, and civic partners to tackle the root causes of hate and violence.

Move beyond isolated discussions and join a continuous civic process designed to bridge the gap between talk and action. The Safer Communities Project is a unique platform where youth, faith leaders, and policymakers unite to reduce hate crime and build social cohesion.

What's happened so far

This session follows two UK-wide civic dialogues held in October and November 2025, which brought together:

- 91 participants

- from 11 UK cities and 14 London boroughs

- across youth, education, faith, charity, health, and civic sectors

Across those dialogues, participants reached clear consensus that:

- hate crime is rooted in isolation, fear, misinformation, and lack of interaction between communities

- prevention depends on skills like empathy, dialogue, critical thinking, and reconciliation, which must be actively taught and modelled

- families, schools, community leaders, and civic institutions must work together, rather than in silos

Crucially, these initial dialogues were followed by a period of implementation, during which reconciliation training sessions, peace education classes, and an in-person panel event on women's safety were held. This allowed the dialogues to come alive and become action, not just words.

Our February dialogue

Explore why our differences are the essential building blocks for resilient, strong communities, hear expert advice on successful case studies in the UK, and learn more about what practical skills are needed to reduce fear, polarisation, and hate before they escalate.

Date: Saturday, February 21, 2026

Time: 13:00 - 15:00

Location: Hybrid - Central London / Online

Participation is free but registration is required.

If you have questions or would like to receive the outcome documents from our previous civic dialogues, simply email ipyg.unitedkingdom@gmail.com.