9 Oct 2025, 11:41Enoch Kanagaraj BEM Church Elder, Stanborough Park Church | Founder & CEO, One VisionStanborough Park, Watford, WD25 0JP, United Kingdom
Cultural Intelligence Awareness Session at Stanborough Park: A Biblical Call to Unity and Understanding
Stanborough Park Seventh-day Adventist church became a place of learning, dialogue, and transformation as One Vision charity, in partnership with Macmillan Cancer Support, hosted a groundbreaking Cultural Intelligence Awareness Session on 30 September.
Leaders from across Hertfordshire and Essex – including representatives from health, social care, local authorities, housing, faith communities, police, and fire and rescue services – came together to explore the urgent need for cultural safety, understanding, and inclusion.
This was not just another meeting. It was a safe yet challenging space where language, culture, trust, and lived experience were placed at the centre of every conversation. Delegates reflected on how cultural differences shape access to services, trust in leadership, and community outcomes. The session called leaders to move beyond words into action – toward humility, compassion, and genuine inclusion.
Quoting the Apostle Paul, participants were reminded:
“There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus” (Galatians 3:28).
Attendees were encouraged to give themselves permission to be vulnerable – to ‘get it wrong’ and to learn. Through listening, kindness, curiosity, and courage, moments of discomfort became opportunities for deeper understanding and stronger community connections.
The challenge was clear:
· How do we build genuine cross-cultural relationships in leadership?
· How do we create cultural safety within our teams?
· What steps will ensure that trust and inclusion remain at the heart of Hertfordshire’s future?
The impact was tangible. Leaders left inspired, challenged, and determined to act differently – to question assumptions, foster inclusivity, and make respect and equity non-negotiable values within their leadership.
Special thanks were extended to Samira Ben Omar, Experience Consultant, for facilitating a thought-provoking and practical session on cultural intelligence in healthcare, and to Dr Tanvir Alam, Deputy Medical Director, who guided the dialogue with lived experience, wisdom, and clarity.
Chief Superintendent Diane Whiteside of Hertfordshire Police summarised the experience powerfully:
“Partnership working, and more importantly, learning at its best!”
Reflecting on the session, Enoch Kanagaraj BEM, founder and CEO of One Vision charity and a member of Stanborough Park church, said:
“This is more than an event – it is a movement. True change happens when leaders and communities stand together, listen deeply, and choose to act. At One Vision, we believe transformation begins when faith and action unite.”
The day concluded with a reflection on Micah 6:8:
“To act justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.”
As Seventh-day Adventists, we are called to be the light of the world (Matthew 5:14). On this day at Stanborough Park, that light shone brightly – illuminating a path toward unity, equity, and cultural intelligence, where all communities across Hertfordshire can flourish together in faith and understanding.
Stanborough Park Seventh-day Adventist church became a place of learning, dialogue, and transformation as One Vision charity, in partnership with Macmillan Cancer Support, hosted a groundbreaking Cultural Intelligence Awareness Session on 30 September.
Leaders from across Hertfordshire and Essex – including representatives from health, social care, local authorities, housing, faith communities, police, and fire and rescue services – came together to explore the urgent need for cultural safety, understanding, and inclusion.
This was not just another meeting. It was a safe yet challenging space where language, culture, trust, and lived experience were placed at the centre of every conversation. Delegates reflected on how cultural differences shape access to services, trust in leadership, and community outcomes. The session called leaders to move beyond words into action – toward humility, compassion, and genuine inclusion.
Quoting the Apostle Paul, participants were reminded:
“There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus” (Galatians 3:28).
Attendees were encouraged to give themselves permission to be vulnerable – to ‘get it wrong’ and to learn. Through listening, kindness, curiosity, and courage, moments of discomfort became opportunities for deeper understanding and stronger community connections.
The challenge was clear:
· How do we build genuine cross-cultural relationships in leadership?
· How do we create cultural safety within our teams?
· What steps will ensure that trust and inclusion remain at the heart of Hertfordshire’s future?
The impact was tangible. Leaders left inspired, challenged, and determined to act differently – to question assumptions, foster inclusivity, and make respect and equity non-negotiable values within their leadership.
Special thanks were extended to Samira Ben Omar, Experience Consultant, for facilitating a thought-provoking and practical session on cultural intelligence in healthcare, and to Dr Tanvir Alam, Deputy Medical Director, who guided the dialogue with lived experience, wisdom, and clarity.
Chief Superintendent Diane Whiteside of Hertfordshire Police summarised the experience powerfully:
“Partnership working, and more importantly, learning at its best!”
Reflecting on the session, Enoch Kanagaraj BEM, founder and CEO of One Vision charity and a member of Stanborough Park church, said:
“This is more than an event – it is a movement. True change happens when leaders and communities stand together, listen deeply, and choose to act. At One Vision, we believe transformation begins when faith and action unite.”
The day concluded with a reflection on Micah 6:8:
“To act justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.”
As Seventh-day Adventists, we are called to be the light of the world (Matthew 5:14). On this day at Stanborough Park, that light shone brightly – illuminating a path toward unity, equity, and cultural intelligence, where all communities across Hertfordshire can flourish together in faith and understanding.
