Uniting 'Together In Hope'

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The University of Leicester, in partnership with Leicester City Football Club and the Diocese of Leicester, and supported by a raft of local public figures, invites the citizens of Leicester and Leicestershire to come together in a celebration of community spirit this weekend.

Headed by President and Vice-Chancellor Professor Nishan Canagarajah, Foxes CEO Susan Whelan and Bishop Martyn Snow, ‘Together In Hope’ will highlight messages of encouragement and the many acts of kindness and concern for one another that have been springing up during lockdown.

Sports, education, business, charity, arts, community and faith leaders and personalities are supporting ‘Together In Hope’ on social media. The project is being co-ordinated by Turi King, the University’s Professor of Public Engagement and Revd Dr Tom Wilson of the St Philip’s Centre, Leicester’s internationally recognised interfaith centre.

Using the hashtags #TogetherInHope and #WeAreLeicester the coalition of prominent local figures invite anyone in – or with a connection to – the city or county to tell the world what we celebrate about Leicester and Leicestershire and how we’ll come through this current challenge and move forward together in hope.

You could produce a piece of art, write a poem, make a film clip, create some spoken word, share a recipe, write a letter, highlight community and charitable work or just pose for a photo with the Together in Hope branding – either at home or beside a local landmark. Do whatever you like that lets people know how great Leicester/shire is and how we’ll continue moving forward together in hope.

Professor Nishan Canagarajah said: “Leicester is an incredible city. There is so much diversity and unity in one place. It has the world at your doorstep. I am proud of Leicester and it is one of the reasons why I want to champion this great initiative, Together in Hope, to ensure we come out of this lockdown stronger and more united. It’s more important now than ever to shine a light on what is great about our city. Together we can be a beacon of hope for others.”

Personalities and organisations supporting #TogetherInHope #WeAreLeicester include:

  • Professor Nishan Canagarajah, President and Vice-Chancellor, University of Leicester
  • Susan Whelan, CEO, Leicester City Football Club
  • Rt Revd Martyn Snow, Bishop of Leicester
  • Rosemary Conley CBE, Businesswoman, author and broadcaster
  • Jonathan Agnew, The BBC Cricket Correspondent
  • Gary Lineker OBE, BBC Sports Correspondent
  • Maggie Philbin, Tomorrows World
  • Simon Cole QPM, Chief Constable, Leicestershire Police
  • Rick Taylor, Chief Fire and Rescue Officer
  • Professor Robert Allison, President and Vice-Chancellor, Loughborough University
  • Professor Andy Collop, Interim Vice-Chancellor, De Montfort University
  • Geoff Rowe BEM, Festival Director, Big Difference Company
  • Scott Knowles, Chief Executive, East Midlands Chamber of Commerce
  • Flor Healy, Group Chief Executive, Samworth Brothers
  • Kevin Routledge, Chairman, Leicester Riders
  • Sean Jarvis, Chief Executive, Leicester Cricket Club
  • Andrea Pinchen, Chief Executive, Leicester Tigers
  • Verity Hancock, Principal, Leicester College
  • Dawn Whitemore, Principal, The SMB Group
  • Chas Bishop, Chief Executive, Leicester Space Centre
  • Karamjit Singh, Chair, University Hospitals of Leicester
  • Andy Williams, Chief executive of the NHS Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland CCGs
  • Chris Stafford, Chief Executive, Curve Theatre
  • Nikolai Foster, Artistic Director, Curve Theatre
  • Revd Mark Burleigh, Head of Chaplaincy and Bereavement Services, Leicester’s Hospitals
  • Suleman Nagdi, Spokesperson, Federation of Muslim Organisations
  • Resham Singh Sandhu, MBE, Leicestershire Interfaith Forum
  • Pradip Gajjar, President, ISKCON Leicester
  • Rt Revd Dr Guli Francis-Dehqani, Bishop of Loughborough
  • Jonathan Kerry, Chief Executive, Leicester Diocese
  • The Very Revd David Monteith, Dean of Leicester
  • Revd Jenny Impey, Minister, Leicester Trinity Methodist Circuit
  • Revd Novette Headley, Superintendent Minister, Leicester West Methodist Circuit
  • Dilwar Hussain, Chair, New Horizons in British Islam
  • Associate Professor David Bartram, Chair, Leicester Progressive Jewish Community
  • Jiten Anand, Director, Inspirate
  • Sean Carroll, Director, Inspirate
  • Bipin Anand, Director, ImageNova
  • Glynis Wright, President Leicestershire Law Society
  • Ravi Tara, Group Finance Director, Mattioli Woods
  • Professor Turi King, Professor of Public Engagement, Leicester University
  • Revd Dr Tom Wilson, Director, St Philip’s Centre