THE Bishop of Bradford has spoken of his experiences on a visit to Finsbury Park following the mosque attack.

The Right Reverend Toby Howarth, who is heavily involved with interfaith relations, visited friends at the Finsbury Park Mosque and nearby Muslim Welfare House yesterday to learn about the effect the incident had had on the local community.

One man died and several were injured after a van struck pedestrians near the mosque, in the early hours of yesterday.

Bishop Howarth said: “After a weekend which saw thousands coming to The Great Get Together events celebrating what different communities have in common, the news of the terrorist attack on Muslim worshippers in Finsbury Park was a grim reminder of a hate-filled alternative.

“My prayers and thoughts are with those who are directly affected in London, and with all who feel especially vulnerable now as they go to worship.

“It’s important that we continue to reach out to one another, as we did over the weekend, to affirm the right that all of us have to live and pray in safety.”

Bishop Howarth appeared on Radio 4 alongside Irfan Christi, Imam at Manchester city mosque, and Laura Janner-Klausner, senior Rabbi at Reform Judaism, this morning to discuss whether faith groups uniting in grief and prayer following tragic events is an effective way to reduce segregation between communities.

“I believe interfaith relations do a lot of good especially in times like these,” said Bishop Howarth, who has previously worked as the interfaith adviser to the Archbishop of Canterbury.

“When I visited, I was surprised just how busy and diverse it was, people were just getting on with their lives. On Saturday hundreds of people were there having a fun party in memory of Jo Cox, and then on Monday it was just eerily silent.

“I was speaking to the people at Finsbury Park mosque, who invited us in, who were there when the attack happened, and what was impressive is many of the people said they wouldn’t let it stop them from getting on with their daily lives.

“The community has had a huge outpouring of sympathy from all sections of society, which shows how important it is to build bridges between communities and the importance of interfaith relations.”