Slough Liberal Democrats win unanimous backing for motion against hate crime

“The fightback has begun!” declared Cllr Sabia Akram Leader of the Slough Liberal Democrat Council Group, as she welcomed all-party support at November's Slough Borough Council meeting, for her motion supporting Islamophobia Awareness month and tackling wider hate crime.

Islamophobia Awareness month takes place every November and aims to raise awareness of Islamophobia and to showcase the positive contributions of Muslims in society. In proposing the motion, Councillor Akram (see photo above with other Slough Lib Dems meeting Sir Ed Davey, party Leader), emphasised, ‘Islamophobia awareness month is not a box-ticking exercise. It is a reminder of the lived reality of people who look like me – a reminder that behind every statistic is a family, a community, a person simply trying to live in peace and dignity’.

Statistics released by Tell MAMA, an independent non-governmental organisation which works on tackling anti-Muslim hatred, show between June and September 2025, Tell MAMA, recorded 17 attacks on mosques and 913 incidents of hate targeting Muslim and migrant communities.

‘These aren’t numbers we can ignore…Slough is home to more than 47,000 Muslim residents. We are a proud, multicultural town, and we say clearly and unapologetically: Islamophobia has no place here. To be truly anti-racist, we must confront anti-Muslim hate with action, not slogans; with accountability, not silence’, added Councillor Akram.

In seconding the motion, Councillor Waqas Sabah (see photo - in the middle, next to Ed Davey) also welcomed the Government’s £10 million commitment to community protection with Slough being a beneficiary of this extra funding, however, ‘funding only matters if it used wisely, transparently and with long-term impact. It must strengthen communities, not simply patch over the cracks’, said Councillor Sabah.

The Liberal Democrat motion also called for strengthened partnerships with the Community Cohesion Forum, ensuring further cross-party cooperation and engagement with wider stakeholders, as well as training on racism, sexism and unconscious bias to become the standard for current councillors and members of staff, ‘Our own Member Development Programme lacks even basic equality, diversity and inclusion training. We debate misogyny and racism in this chamber, yet we still question whether required training has even been completed. If we cannot embody the values we claim to uphold, how can we ask the public to trust us?”

A full copy of the Liberal Democrat Motion can be read below:

Lib Dem Motion: Islamophobia Awareness Month and Tackling Hate Crime

Proposed by Cllr Sabia Akram; Seconded by Cllr Waqas Sabah

“This Council

· Supports ‘Islamophobia Awareness Month (IAM)’ which aims to raise awareness of Islamophobia and to showcase the positive contributions of Muslims in society and commits to actively promoting this initiative every November.

· Celebrates the diverse contributions throughout the generations made by UK Muslims both in Slough and wider afield, the United Kingdom and commits to recognising this fact every November as part of Islamophobia Awareness Month.

· Notes with deep concern the significant and alarming rise in cases of Islamophobia, with some regions of the UK seeing record levels of anti-Muslim hate and commits to listening to the voices and experiences of Muslim members as we move forward in tackling Islamophobia together.

· Believes adequate training and support for members within Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) spaces is insufficient and calls for training and support for members to be improved.

· Recognises that Slough is home to many different faiths and communities, and reaffirms its commitment to tackling all forms of hatred, including Islamophobia, antisemitism, anti-Hindu hate, anti-Sikh hate, anti-Christian hate and any other form of prejudice or discrimination affecting protected or minority groups.

This Council resolves to ask:

· The Member Development Working Group to consider including, in the 2026-27 training and development programme for members, equality, diversity and inclusion key themes and modules focusing on topics such as racism, sexism and unconscious bias.

· The Chief Executive to consider implementing a similar arrangement to that set out above for staff and contractors.

The Cabinet to consider:

· Strengthening and broadening the existing Community Cohesion Forum by reviewing its membership to ensure even further cross-party representation and engagement with residents, stakeholders, partners including faith and community groups and staff networks.

· Fostering a “One Slough” approach where the Council provides a supportive and strategic role in strengthening relationships, fostering understanding, and reinforcing Slough’s identity as a borough that embraces and champions diversity.

· Through the work of the Community Cohesion Forum seeking the adoption of an ‘Enabler Approach’ that is centred around community power and empowering and supporting our communities to mark and celebrate community cohesion and inclusion events that matter to them.

· Working with the police and partners, including through the Safer Slough Partnership, to continue prioritising hate crime prevention and response.

· Utilising the MHCLG Cohesion Grant to support local cohesion objectives, including enabling and capacity-building faith leaders to develop a Slough Faith

Compact—an agreed outcome from the summer Forum—providing a more collaborative and sustainable way of working with faith and community partners.