Radio 4 reported that police and border control are once again going to run Operation Limelight at major airports to prevent children being taken abroad for female genital mutilation (FGM) or arranged marriages. Officers will be speaking to airline and airport personnel to raise awareness, and advise what signs to look for on outbound flights to countries where FGM and child marriage are prevalent. In school holidays families take girls abroad. The girls believe they are going on a family holiday and are unaware of what is about to happen to them. Research shows that 90% of police, health and social care professionals have not received training around these issues and did not feel confident in managing the safeguarding aspect of FGM or how to address cultural sensitivity and barriers.

There continues to be a decline in people identifying as Christian and a substantial increase in those with no religious affiliation or belonging to non-Christian faiths. The percentage identifying as Church of England or Anglican fell from 40% in 1983 to 12% last year. Catholicism fared better in the equivalent timeline falling from 10% to 7%. However among non-denominational Christians it increased from 3% to 13%. The 36th British Social Attitudes report comes after decades of conflict between domestic religious organisations and fast-changing social values. The decline is ‘generational’. Two non-religious parents successfully transmit their lack of religion to the next generation. Two religious parents have a 50% chance of passing on their faith. One religious parent does only half as well as two together.

Gambling rules in Northern Ireland could be brought into line with tighter standards in the rest of the UK following an intervention by the Bishop of St Albans, Alan Smith, and the Bishop of Newcastle, Christine Hardman. Pray that their amendment will be accepted by the Government. The amendment adds gambling legislation to a number of areas on which the Government would be required to produce a report by September as part of moves to restore the devolved executive in Northern Ireland. Bishop Hardman told peers that the current inconsistency meant that reforms introduced in mainland Britain - such as the cap on the maximum stake on Fixed Odds Betting Terminals - do not apply in Northern Ireland. ‘The anomalies and confusions abound,’ she said. ‘Gambling operates inconsistently within the UK, and this affects lives.’ Bishop Alan said, ‘Currently people from Northern Ireland are three times more likely to have a gambling-related problem than in the rest of the country’.

Theodora Giggle Doctors are professional performers, highly trained to work in hospitals and hospice environments with children with disabilities. They are actors, entertainers, magicians, musicians and singers. Play in hospital gives children the chance to forget about what they are going through and makes situations that could be scary and worrying more fun, creating happy memories. Play stops children getting bored and takes their mind away from what is going on around them. The Giggle Doctors always bring joy and laughter not only to the children but also to parents and hospital staff. During their visits they are able to make children relax and feel happy, taking their mind away from the hospital environment they are in and creating smiles which parents treasure.

A Zen group will no longer be holding their hour-and-a-half silent meditation sessions at the Old Palace in the Cathedral grounds, due to complaints that it is incompatible with Christianity. The Wild Goose Sangha group sessions were run by Canon Chris Collingwood, an Anglican priest who is also a Zen teacher, and referred to as the Sensei within the meditation sessions. Zen meditation roots are in Buddhism and Canon Collingwood describes himself as ‘religiously bilingual’ and said Zen poses fewer problems than other non-Christian customs because it doesn’t claim to be a system of doctrine or belief. Concerns were raised three years ago about the compatibility of Zen with Christianity and finally cancelled after the Rt Rev Dr Jonathan Frost, the dean of York Minster, ended the Minster’s association with the group.

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