Sutton Council to officially celebrate Hindu and Buddhist New Year

Sutton Council will officially celebrate the Hindu and Buddhist New Year for the first time on 14 April.

Full Council agreed an amended motion by Councillor Param Nandha  on 28 January to promote all major festivals of main religions as notified to council.

Councillor Param Nandha said: “I am delighted Sutton Borough council has adopted this motion.

“In this difficult time of division in our nation and communities, it is a well timed chance to celebrate another nation's faith and culture, and to reinforce the values that all parties in our borough have been proud to support and proclaim.

“Our differences, and the opportunities arising from them,bring us closer together and bring us a better understanding of ourselves as Suttonites, Londoners and as Brits.

Local schools and local community groups will be contacted to promote the events.

Councillor Ruth Dombey, Leader of Sutton Council, said cultures and traditions should be celebrated by everyone, whatever their own personal heritage.

She added: “Learning about other faiths and other traditions and deepening our understanding of other cultures makes our communities more cohesive and enriches our lives.

“Festivals are the way that a community comes together. Traditional clothes, traditional foods, traditional dances and processions are a time honoured way of marking our joy and sharing it with others.

“Sutton Council has always been open to promoting such events amongst the wider community.

“It is an honour to be here this evening to celebrate the diversity of the different cultures and the different traditions of the many people living in the London Borough of Sutton.”