Plurality at Close Quarters: Mixed-Faith Families in the UK

Abstract 'Mixed-faith' families (where parents are from different religious backgrounds) experience plurality first-hand and represent an under-researched and underrepresented aspect of religious and cultural plurality. On the basis of a three-year study at the University of Warwick, this article examines how children in such families form their own religious and social identities, in conjunction with influences from school and the wider community. We show that mixed-faith families both reflect and add to the plurality and diversity of contemporary Britain and that they do not conform to commonly held stereotypes. Although mixed faith parents' ambitions and hopes are similar to those of parents, their lives have an added dimension. Equally, young people's perceptions suggest they see nothing unusual in their upbringing, but they value the opportunities which their parents' backgrounds potentially open up for them.