A GROUP of Burnley Christians and Muslim leaders are leading the way in promoting multi-faith communities.

A delegation of 18 faith leaders from the borough will return today from a two-day trip to London designed to deepen their understanding of faith and community issues.

Behind the visit is the Rev Dale Barton, Anglican priest and inter-faith officer for Churches Together in Lancashire, and Hamid Qureshi, chairman of the Lancashire Council of Mosques and co-ordinator for interfaith group Building Bridges in Burnley.

The Rev Barton, who is believed to be the only clergyman working in inter-faith relations for a regional Christian organisation, said: "Out of the 18 of us on the trip, we have Catholic, Baptists, Anglican and Methodist representatives, as well as five imams and a sixth representative from Burnley's mosques.

"A main objective was for us to get to know each other better as the faith leadership of Burnley, and about each others traditions, but also to fly the Burnley flag in London, to show we are working hard.

"We want to show that faith communities are part of the answer to current problems, they are not the problem itself."

The trip to London included politics, science and culture as well as religion.

The group were given a tour of the House of Commons by Burnley MP Kitty Ussher, including a visit to the Department of Community and Local Government, after which the Rev Barton hopes an official will pay a visit to Burnley soon.

A trip to Greenwich Observatory explained how moon cycles affects the Muslim calendar, while Anglican and Catholic traditions were discussed at Westminster Abbey and Cathedral. The group also viewed Islamic art at the Victoria and Albert Museum.

The Rev Barton said: "From speaking to the Department of Community and Government, I think that this is the first time such a trip has been undertaken, and it's been a very enjoyable success.

"By developing and building on our relationships we are working together for the good of the whole society and other faiths, for community cohesion."

The two-day trip was partly funded by the government's Faith Communities Capacity Building Fund, and by the group members themselves.