Team

Chair: Mandip Sohal BSc (Hons), FCCA

Mr Sohal has over 23 years of experience of financial and administration matters with hands-on experience of building upoperations. He has extensive knowledge of company finance and administration. His career spans many large organisations, which include Pearl, Prudential, Foreign & Colonial, Skandia, the Rothschild family office. Currently employed as Chief Compliance Officer and Financial Controller of an organisation with compliance responsibility over investment assets of over $6 billion. He has been involved with the URI-UK since   2002 and became chairman in 2004, taking over from Malcolm Stonestreet.

CEO: Kiran Bali MBE JP

Kiran has extensive experience within the field of Interfaith Cooperation and community relations. She works at an International level to build bridges of cooperation and mutual respect. Ordained as an Interfaith Minister from the USA, Kiran leads a host of outreach events and services of prayer to celebrate the diversity within our global community and brings key skills from her roles as a Non Executive Director.

Advisor to Directors: Malcolm Stonestreet

Educated at Uppingham. Served with the Royal Leicesters in Cyprus. President   of the Union at King’s College, London. Ordained priest in the Anglican communion. Vicar of Askrigg, Bramley, Eskdale. Founder of Low Mill Residential Centre, Cats Mill for the Unemployed, Cumbria Farming and Rural Business Association and Eskdale Open. First Chairman of URI UK. Malcolm Stonestreet is committed to the community in which he lives. He works in partnership and facilitates groups to provide structures and money to change and enrich the lives of those in that community. He retired from active ministry as a Vicar in November 2003 and took the roll of Chief Executive of URI in Jan 2004. Now acts an advisor to the Trustees.

Development Director: Anne Vince

BA (Hons) English. Anne began her career in the private sector before taking up a post at the Headquarters of Business in the Community (BITC) in London where she was involved with the Economic Development and Companies Divisions. As Founder and Director of Partners in the Countryside, Anne worked with His Grace the Duke of Westminster and partners from across all sectors to champion community-led rural regeneration. She secured service level agreements (SLA’s) from English Partnerships and the Countryside Agency to develop and deliver the Working with Rural Communities initiative and published A Guide to Rural Partnership which was launched by MPs at the House of Commons. Anne worked with the Charity Commission to secure rural and urban regeneration as Charitable Objects and has recently reconstituted United Religions Initiative UK as an Incorporated Charity with community cohesion, equality and diversity at the heart of an expanded range of charitable objects.

Trustee: Anita Nayyar

Anita Nayyar is an Organisational Social Psychologist (MSc.) who has worked for five years in research and facilitating decision makers from different sectors and cultures to deliver projects and services collaboratively.
Anita was previously a policy official at a central government department where she worked under former Secretary of State Hazel Blears MP to manage the project work and ensure the cross-government and parliamentary influence of the National Muslim Women’s Advisory Group. She has also worked with various National and regional NGO’s where she has delivered organisational policy change, training and intercultural & interfaith conflict resolution projects.
Anita gained an MSc. in Organisational and Social Psychology from the LSE in 2009 and her academic work has brought her to develop measures of bilateral business partnership dynamics between the West and Middle East with the Abu Dhabi Chamber of Commerce. She currently works with commercial and public sector companies to gain stakeholder insights using collaborative research and behavioural analytic techniques.
Anita has previously volunteered for the United Religions Initiative, The Spirit of The North where she led a team to create a DVD on the faith history of Burnley in Lancashire.
Anita’s passion for interfaith harmony comes from her multifaith family background which includes Christians, Muslims, Hindu’s and Sikhs

Trustee: Rauf Bashir

Have been a community worker for over ten years and project manager at Building Bridges Pendle for 5 years. Involved with a number of local, regional and national Interfaith and faith based groups in both a paid and voluntary capacity. Previous work experience includes being a youth and community worker for seven years.
I am initiated into the Naqshbandi Sufi Order and have a keen interest in personal development through spiritual practices and Sufi teachings. My motivation and inspiration to help bring people together to live in peace and harmony is the basis of a spiritual journey.
Leading Building Bridges Pendle to become a leading Interfaith organisation with local and national recognition for a wide range of community projects.
Together with a multi-faith team, I have set up many of the working practices of our Interfaith organisation which are aiming to promote mutual understanding and cohesion in our diverse community.