Causeway Coast & Glens Borough Council is joining schools, charities, community groups and businesses across Causeway Coast & Glens in encouraging people to attend an event during Good Relations Week 2026, which begins next Monday, 12 October.
Organised by the Community Relations Council, the week will bring together hundreds of events from more than 130 organisations across Northern Ireland between Monday 12 and Sunday 18 October.
The programme ranges from workshops, exhibitions and film screenings to theatre, music, storytelling, sport and panel discussions. The events will give people opportunities to meet, share experiences and hear perspectives different from their own.
This year’s theme, ‘Include - Everyone. Everywhere. Every Day.’, asks what it takes for people to feel welcomed, heard and able to take part in community life.
Good Relations Week brings people from different backgrounds together to build understanding and address the divisions that still affect communities. Events will create space for conversations about identity, belonging, migration, racism, sectarianism and shared spaces.
The week also shines a light on the work schools, charities and community organisations do throughout the year to strengthen relationships in their communities.
Mayor of Causeway Coast and Glens Borough Council , Councillor Dawn Huggins said: “Causeway Coast & Glens Borough Council is delighted to support Good Relations Week alongside the schools, charities, community groups and businesses taking part across Causeway Coast & Glens. They do great work all year round to bring people together, celebrate different cultures and make our communities more welcoming, but it does not always get the attention it deserves. This week gives us a chance to recognise the people behind that work and encourage others to join them.
“I encourage everyone to visit the Good Relations Week website, look at what is happening locally and attend an event. Whether you join a discussion, watch a performance or simply meet someone new, it is a chance to listen, share experiences and learn from one another. The more people who take part, the stronger and more welcoming our communities can become.”
Good Relations Week has run for more than 20 years and is one of Northern Ireland’s largest annual celebrations of peacebuilding and cultural diversity.
Martin McDonald MBE, Chair of the Community Relations Council, said: “I want to thank the schools, charities, community groups and businesses across Causeway Coast & Glens who have put time and care into this year’s Good Relations Week, and Causeway Coast & Glens Borough Council for supporting them. They are creating opportunities for people from different backgrounds to meet at a time when questions of identity, belonging and division still affect daily life.
“That takes commitment. It means opening doors, making space for different voices and being willing to hear experiences that may challenge our assumptions. Every event is a chance for someone to leave knowing more about a neighbour than they did when they arrived. Those conversations can become the beginning of stronger relationships.”
Jacqueline Irwin, Chief Executive of the Community Relations Council, said: “This year’s theme, ‘Include’, comes down to things people notice straight away: whether they are welcomed when they arrive, invited to take part and listened to when they speak. Those experiences shape whether someone feels they belong.
“The programme gives people of different ages and backgrounds a chance to meet through activities and conversations that might not happen otherwise. Some will explore difficult issues. Others will begin with a shared interest or an enjoyable afternoon. Both can help people understand one another better, and that is something they can take back into their everyday lives.”
Good Relations Week 2026 is supported by The Executive Office and contributes to the delivery of the Together: Building a United Community Strategy.
The full programme of Good Relations Week 2026 events is available at www.goodrelationsweek.com.
Councillor Dawn Huggins, Mayor of Causeway Coast and Glens Borough Council, joins Neil Lynas from The Executive Office; and Community Relations Council Engagement Officer Paul Killen and Chair Martin McDonald MBE to promote Good Relations Week, 12–18 October 2026.