Union Chapel becomes a Church of Sanctuary

On Sunday 22 March 2026, Union Chapel, the historic Congregational Church in Highbury, north London, became the latest Church of Sanctuary. Revd Dr Inderjit Bhogal, who leads Church of Sanctuary, which is a Churches Together in Britain and Ireland programme that encourages churches in the four nations to provide hospitality and sanctuary to asylum seekers and refugees escaping peril, signed the document that recognised the ongoing, efficacious work of the chapel in that part of London.

Also in attendance was Revd Cathy Bird, minister and leader of Union Chapel, who welcomed Revd Inderjit and the congregation to the service on what is generally known as Passion Sunday in the church liturgical calendar. Revd Cathy spoke briefly about the chapel’s engagement with asylum seekers from various parts of the world, which saw them as ideal candidates to become a Church of Sanctuary. Moreover, she later mentioned that the Chapel will be exploring the Bible study sections of Inderjit’s excellent Hospitality and Sanctuary for All book for their devotions after Easter.

Revd Inderjit led the service, and he used the occasion to highlight the importance of Christians showing the love of Christ to those who find themselves on our shores due to war, climate change, poverty and persecution. Inderjit, who was also instrumental in the establishment of the City of Sanctuary movement over 20 years ago, also spoke about the need to counter the narrative of hostility and rancour toward some of the most vulnerable communities in our society, with words and actions that brought hope, love and transformation to lives and situations.

Union Chapel’s accreditation as a Church of Sanctuary coincided with the London Borough of Islington (the borough in which the chapel is located), becoming a ‘Borough of Sanctuary’. As such, following the service, an event took place in the concert hall adjacent to the church to celebrate the borough’s new status as an area that goes ‘above and beyond’ to support sanctuary-seeking residents. Once again, Revd Cathy oversaw proceedings, which included talks by Councillor Sheila Chapman, who played a key role in the borough becoming a sanctuary, and Inderjit, who this time spoke both about the City of Sanctuary and Church of Sanctuary. Guests were also treated to wonderful poetry and readings from the excellent Islington-based arts collective, All Change, and had an opportunity to engage in group conversations about sanctuary and hospitality. All who attended the service, and the later event in the hall, were left in no doubt about the importance of showing compassion and care to those who are most in need of them.

Church of Sanctuary is a growing movement in Britain and Ireland that is seeing an increasing number of churches and cathedrals becoming more intentional in their work with refugees and asylum seekers. For more information about Church of Sanctuary, please see the Church of Sanctuary website. To obtain copies of Hospitality and Sanctuary for All, please see details of the new edition.

Top photo: Union Chapel by Matt Brown