The Building a new Culture of Social Responsibility conference on 6 April brought together 150 individuals and organisations comprising of Government, Parliamentarians, Civil Servants, Catholic agencies, commentators, academics and Bishops. The conference was hosted jointly by Archbishop Vincent Nicholls and Helen O’Brien of Caritas Social Action Network and facilitated by Ed Stourton, religious broadcaster and author, whose skilful chairing enabled a real conversation and dialogue to take place between a knowledgeable panel and participants. Bishop Terence Brain, Caritas Diocese of Salford and the St. Anthony’s Centre for Church and Industry attended to hear the clear message that in these challenging times there was an important role for the Church in social justice that put the human person centre-stage. The unique role of the Church would be to promote a conversion of mind and heart which cannot be achieved by government or policy initiative alone.
The conference underlined the important role of Catholic social action and its contribution to building a new culture of social responsibility. The conference confirmed a new determination in the Church’s involvement with the social needs of our country. The issues identified – whether as challenges or opportunities – will need to be translated into practical projects and services in the coming year and the Church will need to work in partnership with Government and other agencies to bring about social change.

Archbishop Vincent Nicholls addressing the gathering said, “An integral part of the Christian witness is to stand in solidarity with those in need, to ask insistent questions of local and national government about the priorities by which decisions are made, about who is bearing the brunt of the cuts and to sustain particular concern for groups most at risk. As unemployment, debt and financial hardship increase, so too can severe social issues including homelessness, family breakdowns, crime and alcoholism. These increase the burden on social action organisations at a time when funding to these organisations, not only from central government and local authorities but also from donors, will be reducing.”

Baroness Warsi spoke of the Big Society and said that “the solution to social problems like crime, drug abuse and poverty is not to insulate ourselves from their consequences or hand the response to someone else. It is to fight them together.”
The event is part of a coherent response to the call of Pope Benedict for the church in these current difficult economic and social times "to take a lead in calling for solidarity with those in need. The prophetic voice of Christians has an important role in highlighting the needs of the poor and disadvantaged, who can so easily be overlooked in the allocation of limited resources."
Earlier this year a statement from the Catholic Bishops' Conference of England and Wales stated that “The present economic situation creates immense challenges for everyone in our society. We are very conscious of the hardship and stress felt by many individuals and families at the present time, as well as the difficult task facing the government, the charitable sector and the country at large.”