Meet the team

Phil is the Director and heads up our Senior Leadership Team. He joined F&BF to apply his peacebuilding experience more to a UK context, and he sees a lot of potential in combining peacebuilding and inter-cultural approaches to strengthening relations. He is passionate about education and peacebuilding; he has worked in many contexts affected by violent conflict, including the Philippines, Myanmar, Sri Lanka and the South Caucasus.

He has a degree in History from Cambridge University, a PGCE from Bangor University in North Wales and an MA in Restorative Justice from the University of Hull.

Marcella joined F&BF in March 2021 as the Head of Operations within the new senior leadership team. She has a wealth of experience in senior operations management. She was initially attracted to our clear vision to be at the heart of building strong and lasting relationships, closing some gaps.

Louise leads on F&BF programmes and developing our new strand of policy work. She has worked on rights-based campaigns and advocacy for several years, most recently at an NGO that used multimedia as a platform for human rights advocacy. She has also been an advisor on research and funding at a think-tank that works on sustainable solutions for peace and stability across the Islamic World. Prior to non-profit roles, Louise taught in various education settings for over a decade. Currently continuing academic work part-time, her PhD thesis examines the transnationalism of Black religious movements, nationalisms and their relationship to power.

Louise likes eastern philosophies and travel.

Carrie has been involved with interfaith work in Edinburgh and Seattle, through experiencing interfaith spiritual communities, conducting research and roles in project management. She’s also got a passion for equality in education, after working for access to higher education programmes in Glasgow, and running an intercultural safe space and education centre for refugees in Serbia.

Carrie likes getting creative, graphic design, dancing, baking and gardening.

Maya works to support the operations of F&BF. She was previously a Kickstarter in the Movement Building team.

Prior to joining F&BF, Maya undertook different courses at college such as art & design, makeup artistry and business admin. She has also volunteered with a Christian youth charity since she was 16.

She describes herself as a creative and artistic person.

Ben manages our finance function and budget processes.

Outside of the office he is a yoga teacher specialising in gong baths!

Caroline is F&BF’s Design and Fundraising Co-ordinator. She studied law at Southampton Solent and finished her degree at London Metropolitan.

She began a legal career in family, conveyancing and employment law as a Paralegal. Through volunteering in her spare time Caroline felt she wanted to work for a cause that meant more to her and was more in line with her personal beliefs and values.

She began working for the charity sector in an organisation that supports people with learning disabilities, mental health and autism leading on managing volunteers and placement students.

Caroline is also fluent in French.

Matthew is part of the Community Team and helps to plan and deliver events and programmes across London, as well as source new partners and audiences for F&BF to engage with.

He has a BA in Politics and Economics from the University of Manchester and an MA in Public Policy from King’s College London. One of Matthew’s academic fascinations was how hate can be mobilised as a strategic tool in politics and he believes that through interfaith work and education we can all help to combat social divisions.

Matthew completed the ParliaMentors programme in 2018/19, subsequently joining the F&BF London Youth Council and becoming its Chair in June 2022. He is Jewish and has previously participated in Jewish organisations such as JLGB and RSY, including their summer and winter camps as a participant and leader. He also enjoys volunteering and has previously worked with charities across a range of topics including world peace, terminally ill children and offering free tech support in his local community.

Mahmooda has been involved in many initiatives in Birmingham and some beyond, to enhance relationships with people of all background. She’s a strong believer of human race having more things in common than differences. By working together as one humanity, putting aside differences, she believes we can achieve many great things and make this world a better place.

She has a degree in Industrial Information Technology and a Post Graduate Certificate in Education. She has taught in secondary schools.

She’s worked with HOPE not hate for 4 years. She works for Ella Baker School of Organising one day a week, who she joined in April 2020. Currently, she’s also the Birmingham Branch Coordinator for Islamic Society of Britain.

In her spare time she enjoys gardening, travelling and going on tandem bike rides with her better half.

Rachel is part of the University team delivering the ParliaMentors programme.

Rachel was born and raised in the Jewish community of Toronto. She holds a BA in Peace, Conflict, Justice Studies and Philosophy from the University of Toronto, and a MSc Conflict Studies from the London School of Economics. 

Rachel’s passions are experiential education and peacebuilding. She has facilitated dialogue programs between Israelis and Palestinians, run backpacking programmes in Israel-Palestine, and she was the Manager of Communications for a grassroots peacebuilding initiative in the West Bank. She has also taught Jewish education in Toronto, been the leader of a youth movement, and delivered many projects that focus on cultivating social leadership amongst young people of all backgrounds.

Lauryn Duncan-Rouse is a Programs Coordinator at the Faith and Belief Forum, with a focus on youth and university engagement.

She is a graduate in Law from SOAS, University of London where she conducted research into the localisation of national and international human rights instruments through grassroots initiatives.

Lauryn’s advocacy journey started in a Dunkirk refugee camp, working with displaced children, leading her to campaign for refugee rights and engage with MPs and Councillors for community acceptance. Amid Brexit, she also facilitated interfaith dialogues with local faith leaders to address rising tensions.

Lauryn has spearheaded the Faith and Belief Forum’s Research & Policy Project, empowering young individuals and those from diverse backgrounds to participate in policy discussions and advocacy. Her recent presentation at the European Academy of Religion (EuARe) conference highlighted the significance of interfaith youth leadership in enhancing community cohesion.

Amy has responsibility for our School Linking Programme. She has 20 years of experience of working with children, young people and professionals in education settings. For the past 15 years, she worked for Save the Children in education and participation focused roles involving direct work and programme delivery with children, young people and parents. Most recently she has focused on designing, delivering and evaluating training for professionals ranging from Teachers, and senior school leaders, to Local Authority staff, inspectors, and corporate volunteers. Amy managed a team of trainers in the South of England who supported parental engagement programmes of work.

Having worked in the education sector for 20 years, Amy believes that empowering children, young people, parents and professionals to develop their voice and understanding of the world is key to change. She has seen the powerful impact that collaborative and person-centred education can have in making this change.

Amy is working towards her CIPD professional qualification in Learning and Development. She holds a post-graduate qualification in Youth and Community Work and undertook a masters level module in Children’s Learning and Development.

Laura works as an administrator role in our Education & Learning team. Whilst at university, she first became involved with F&BF as part of the ParliaMentors programme, identifying a lot with our mission and values.

She has undergraduate degree in Wildlife Conservation from the University of Salford and a Master’s in Human Rights and Environmental Law from Lancaster University. She has volunteered helping teach English lessons for refugees and is passionate about creating universal equality and a tolerant society.

In her spare time she enjoys reading, politics, foraging and walking her pet beagle.

Alejandra is the education officer within the Schools team.

She was born and raised in Bogotá, Colombia where she completed her undergraduate degrees in Literature, and in Languages and Socio-Cultural Studies from Universidad de Los Andes. She also holds a MA in Education and International Development from UCL – Institute of Education.

Alejandra has worked in the education sector for more than 10 years, from teaching young people and facilitating workshops to designing, implementing, and monitoring education programmes and projects. She believes that education, formal and non-formal, contributes not only to individual development but also to the upholding of societal values.

In her spare time, she enjoys reading literature, listening to music, cuddling her dog, and running.

Sophie (she/her) is part of the Community Team, working with local faith communities across London, as well as with young people and the LGBTQ+ community.

She has a BA in Theology and Sociology from the University of Bristol and is currently studying for an MA in Religion from King’s College London, with a specific focus on the interfaith youth movement. Before joining F&BF, she worked in a variety of charity sector roles, including at a university multifaith chaplaincy, at a Church of England Diocese, and at the Student Christian Movement. She is also the author of a published chapter on the importance of interfaith dialogue in Victoria Turner eds. Young, Woke and Christian : Words from a Missing Generation (London: SCM Press, 2022).

Outside of work, is a member of the Young Christian Climate Network and loves running, wild swimming and choral singing!