British Asian Rugby Association founder Ikram Butt
The British Asian Rugby Association (BARA) was the brainchild of Ikram Butt, the first British Asian to represent England at rugby league and Pakistan at rugby union.
Kick It Out have worked with Ikram throughout the process of setting up the organisation, and Ikram has spoken about his experiences and hopes for the future.
Why did you originally set up BARA?
The formation of BARA was primarily set up out of frustration with the rugby governing bodies, professional & amateur clubs. My experiences with them had seen no real meaningful change to their policies or attitude towards making the sport of rugby more accessible to the wider BME communities.
This lack of trust & confidence was the catalyst to the formation of BARA as a rugby model, and once we achieve some of our objectives, BARA will be the springboard to facilitate branching out to a national sports network.
Why is sport an important thing for local communities to be involved in?
There is a clear synergy between sport & community cohesion. Ultimately sport has the power to be a major factor in developing harmonious communities and engaging with the BME communities, and it would be a great shame to lose this unique opportunity.
How has Kick It Out helped you?
Kick It Out has been significant and invaluable over the years. Providing much needed support on key issues such as developing policy to facilitate an increase level of participation in sport of the wider BME community.
In five years time where do you see yourself and your organisation?
We will continue to work towards achieving our goals for as long as it takes. There are many individuals / organisations out there doing a fine job with similar goals to ourselves. It is vital to collaborate and join forces to bring about a change.
For example, myself and Pav Singh an FA Ambassador and a wonderful role model for any aspiring children & young people have been members of the National Asian Football Forum since it began in 2005 and we will continue to provide mutual support to reach our common goals.
What has been BARA's biggest achievement in your eyes?
BARA has had some notable successes on the field and gained a number of national awards / recognition towards making the sport of rugby more accessible to the BME communities as well as using rugby / sport as a critical tool for engagement. However, we must be careful to avoid complacency.
There are still question marks over whether the government fully recognises the potential links between the BME communities, sport and the integration agenda, while some sports bodies have failed to take advantage of the ability harnessed within their ranks.
When you finished your professional sporting career why did you decide to work promoting community cohesion?
Sport clearly can play a significant role in bringing communities together and build bridges between the divided communities. Sport can also be used as a critical tool to breaking down barriers, raising awareness of different cultural and religious beliefs and building on community cohesion.
What advice would you give to anyone looking to replicate the work you do?
I would encourage people to have a clear vision of what they want to achieve and go for it with passion and devotion. There are no short term fixes and you have to be in it for the long haul. There shouldn’t be any barriers or obstacles to participation in sport for any one who wants to get involved and we have a duty to make that happen.
To find out more about BARA, visit bararugby.com
