{"id":13689,"date":"2026-01-30T10:22:24","date_gmt":"2026-01-30T10:22:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/faithbeliefforum.org\/?p=13689"},"modified":"2026-01-30T14:16:56","modified_gmt":"2026-01-30T14:16:56","slug":"ceo-journey-grounded-in-grassroots","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/faithbeliefforum.org\/ceo-journey-grounded-in-grassroots\/","title":{"rendered":"CEO Journey: Grounded in Grassroots"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Carrie Alderton<\/a> speaks about her interfaith journey beginning with her studies in Scotland, moving to work with refugees in Serbia, joining the Faith and Belief Forum during the pandemic \u2013 and now leading the organisation from the helms while remaining firmly grounded in F&BF’s grassroots work as new CEO of the Faith and Belief Forum.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

In September 2021 I joined the Faith & Belief Forum. The organisation was emerging from COVID times. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

When I first met some of my colleagues then, we were still doing the awkward dance, of whether you shake hands, bump elbows, or do a little nod. Although we couldn\u2019t follow the pre-COVID social cues, I could tell that this was a radically warm and open team.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Faith and Belief Forum has changed considerably over the past 4 years \u2013 but we’re still deeply embedded in the grassroots communities we serve. That is one of the reasons I admired F&BF from a distance for many years \u2013 ever since I came across them while studying Religious Studies at Edinburgh University (back then of course F&BF was called the 3 Faiths Forum). Here I connected with local faith and belief groups, attended services and celebrations, interned with the Edinburgh Interfaith Association, and ran dialogue sessions with students from multiple societies. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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ParliaMentors Cohort 2024<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Team Meting at Muslim World League<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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F&BF Team Retreat 2025<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
The F&BF teams has changed in the last 4 years \u2013 bu t we’re still deeply embedded in the grassroots communities we serve.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

I was drawn to the deep understanding, and long running resilient relationships, born through interfaith work. And I was drawn to these spaces that helped me to understand my own spirituality more deeply and transformed the way I viewed the world. Throughout my academic study, and involvement and work with interfaith groups in Scotland, I admired from afar the clarity of vision of F&BF, the professionalism of the way it worked, and the way it told its impact with its beneficiaries.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

My career has spanned project coordination in interfaith charities, delivering access to education courses with the University of Glasgow, supporting event and online delivery for multiple Scottish charities, and before the pandemic, managing an educational and safe space with refugees and asylum seekers in Belgrade, Serbia, for two and a half years. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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This is where my passion for equality in education, and celebration of faiths, beliefs and cultures, converged. In a space where many refugees had been stranded for many years, since the closure of the Balkan Route, without access to public services, education was a lifeline.

It helped them to prepare for the country they were aiming to claim asylum in. <\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Student centred education helped them to feel some power, on a route and an experience which so often strips people of their personal autonomy. And, most of all, it created a space where people could feel at home, feel their voice was important, and their beliefs and experiences were respected.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When COVID lockdowns persuaded me to return to the UK, to be close to family, whilst supporting multiple charities as a freelancer, I was searching for my next step: something that would combine my experiences in informal education, skills in project management, and passion for the celebration of faith and belief diversity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I looked again to the organisation I had always wanted to work for, and saw that F&BF were advertising for the role of Manager for the Education & Learning team. Entering this role felt like the culmination of skills, passion and experience I was hoping for. Once in the role, many of the same feelings I had in Serbia came back when I spoke to children and young people on our programmes, about the transformational power of our work in their classrooms, at their universities. I have witnessed young people building confidence in their identity, and finding their voice, in settings they previously felt they did not belong.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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I began working in the schools team \u2013 and my heart is still in the delivery. Young people often have the best ideas and insights that I take back with me!<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Over the four and a half years I have worked for F&BF, the UK and global context has changed dramatically, the organisation has followed suit, and my role has changed and evolved too (from Programme Manager, to Head of Programmes, to Interim CEO). The UK is facing one of our most divided and polarised times, especially when it comes to faith and belief. Identity and grievance is being weaponised, and faith and belief communities are facing the brunt of online polarisation, political scapegoating, and rising levels of hate. We are in an environment where belonging (or who belongs and who doesn\u2019t) is being used to stoke division.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In my opinion, and in my experience, the only answer to the increasing complexity of division is simple: connection.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

With each step up at F&BF, I have been excited to continue working with our incredible team, to shape an organisation that is stronger equipped to evolve and handle these complex challenges. Our strengths are in:<\/p>\n\n\n\n