Faith, Place, & Housing Alliance (FPHA)
The FPHA evolved out of discussions within the Faith & Belief Policy Collective. The UK government’s Pride in Place and New Towns initiatives represent historic opportunities to address housing need and regenerate communities.
Yet evidence from the social unrest of summers 2024 and 2025 demonstrates that housing policy must be sensitive to issues of identity, cohesion, and trust.
The FPHA acts as a multi‑sectoral body ensuring these agendas deliver housing that is community‑led, inclusive, and rooted in values drawn from diverse faith traditions. By mobilising the capacities of faith institutions, the FPHA will help transform housing delivery into a driver of social cohesion rather than division.
Members of the FPHA steering group are listed below. For more information and a copy of the publication 'Housing with Values' that underpins the work of the alliance please click the tab below.
Professor Christoher Baker - Chair
Chris is Professor of Religion, Belief and Public Life at Goldsmiths, University of London, where he is also Director of the Faiths and Civil Society Unit. He is a trustee for the Ella Baker School of Organising and is former Director of Research for the William Temple Foundation, a public theology think tank until early 2026. He is also co-founder of the Faith and Belief Policy Collective.
Rev'd Alison Boulton
New Housing Hub, The Stowe Church
Ali is a pioneer Baptist minister living on a new housing estate, blessing residents and birthing a community relevant church. She co-founded the ecumenical New Housing Hub, is a national Baptist Pioneer Ambassador. She authored Pioneer Ministry in New Housing Areas alongside Penny Marsh, has created a series of ‘How to’ Guides as part of the Archbishop of Canterbury’s Commission on Housing Church and Community. She is a member of the Churches Together in England New Housing Group.
Jonathan Tame
Adviser to Bishop for Housing, Church of England
Jonathan is advisor for housing and community to the Church of England's lead bishop for housing. He coordinates the various entities across the Church as they seek to provide affordable housing on Church property. He co-led the Homes for All initiative, calling on political parties to commit to a long term, cross party national housing strategy. Prior to joining the CofE, Jonathan was director of the Jubilee Centre in Cambridge, providing research and training into Christian perspectives on economic, social and political issues.
Yusuf Javaid MRICS
Muslims in Real Estate
Yusuf is a Chartered Surveyor and founder of Muslims in Real Estate (MiRE), a platform focused on shaping a more ethical, inclusive, and accessible built environment. He has advised on and managed property portfolios exceeding £200 million, with experience spanning asset management, valuation, and strategic real estate consultancy.His work is grounded in a practical understanding of how valuation frameworks, governance, and professional standards influence decision-making across assets and portfolios, focusing on ensuring advice is robust, transparent, and commercially relevant.
Rev'd Penny Marsh
Chair Churches Together in England New Housing Areas
Penny has been working in the Ebbsfleet Garden City area for over 18 years and in 2019 she moved, along with her family, into Ebbsfleet. As a pioneer Baptist minister, she has founded Ebbsfleet Baptist Church which is based in Castle Hill. The church has a strong emphasis on community development and has established several community projects. Penny is a member of the Ebbsfleet Development Corporation’s community board and vice chair of the Ebbsfleet Garden City Trust board. Prior to moving to Ebbsfleet, Penny established a Baptist church in the London Royal Docks. Penny is also co-founder and co- director of the New Housing Hub with Ali Boulton and together they seek to support and equip churches and local Christians to engage with new housing developments.
Dr Iona Hine
Iona is Programme Manager for the Cambridge Interfaith Programme, plus an affiliated cross-sector Knowledge Hub and inter-disciplinary Research Forum convening University of Cambridge scholars who take religion seriously. Her background includes work with researchers in politics, architecture, and urban studies in the Midlands and North West of England, and support to the Centre for Digital Built Britain. She is an active member of the Faith & Belief Policy Collective, contributing to cross‑sector engagement around matters of faith, belief, and values, and co-author of the Collective’s Housing with Values report.
Mark Pratchet
Community Stewardship Solutions
Lauryn Duncan-Rouse
Church Urban Fund
Professor Flora Samuel
Department of Architecture, Cambridge University
Flora is the Professor of Architecture (1970) at Cambridge University and author of Housing for Hope and Wellbeing (2023), amongst other things. She leads Public Map, a major Green Transitions Ecosystems project funded by the AHRC and played a central role in setting up the Cambridge Room, an urban room for the city and surrounding area. Her current research is focusing on the planning of rural areas.
Sarah Joseph
Tilak Parekh
Faculty of Divinity, Cambridge University
Tilak is a researcher of religion and anthropology at the University of Cambridge, where his research explores the role, functions, and construction of Hindu temples. His work examines the varied dimensions of religious buildings: fundraising, planning processes, architecture, construction techniques, and spiritual impetus. Tilak was a contributor to the Faith & Belief Policy Collective's Housing with Values report, drawing on sustained research into Hindu places of worship and British Hinduism. Prior to Cambridge, he studied at Oxford and UCL, with fieldwork spanning the UK, India, the USA, and the UAE.
Karen Hinton-Platt