East London Mosque

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Basic information
East London Mosque
Front view of the East London Mosque.
Location	Tower Hamlets, London United Kingdom
Religious affiliation	Islam
Website	www.eastlondonmosque.org.uk
Architectural description
Architectural type	Mosque
Architectural style	Modern
Year completed	1985
Specifications
Dome(s)	1
Minaret(s)	4

Situated in the inner London borough of Tower Hamlets, between Whitechapel and Aldgate, the East London Mosque amongst a large Muslim community. It lies near the edge of the City of London, the capital's busy business area, and just a couple of miles from the fast-expanding London Docklands.

It one of the largest Mosques in the UK. It was recently expanded to include the London Muslim Centre and now contains two large halls, a seminar suite, a crèche and a primary school. This is in addition to the original building, which is used for prayers only.

1 History
2 Management
3 Services
4 See also
5 References
6 External links

[edit] History

The East London Mosque was conceptualised in 1910, when the local people decided that a mosque was necessary in London to establish the five daily prayers and, in particular, Friday prayers as required by Islam. A fund was set up and contributions were collected.^[1]

In 1940, three houses were purchased on Commercial Road in the east end of London and a permanent place of prayer was set up to replace the previous arrangement where a small room was hired on Fridays for Jumma prayers. The following year, the combined houses were inaugurated as the "East London Mosque" and became the focal point for the growing number of migrant workers taking part in the rebuilding of the city in the post-war era.^[1]

In 1975, the local authority bought the properties under a compulsory purchase order but provided temporary buildings on Whitechapel Road. The local community set about raising funds to erect a purpose-built mosque on the site which was boosted by a contribution from the King of Saudi Arabia. Seven years later, the re-building of the new mosque commenced with foundations laid down in 1982 and completion achieved in 1985.^[1]

[edit] Management

The mosque is managed by trustees who are elected each year at its AGM. The committee for 2007-08 is led by Muhammad Abdul Bari who is the chairman of the management committee.^[2]

The Khatib and primary Imam of the mosque is Abdul Qayyum.

[edit] Services

Dome of the mosque viewed from the rear

The mosque has a stated mission to:

“	... provide a range of holistic, culturally sensitive services for the communities of London with a view to improving the quality of life and enhancing community cohesion	”
—Annual Report 2005-06, East London Mosque Trust Ltd^[3]

To further its mission a number of services are provided to the community including:^[2]

ICT Training and English classes
ISAP — Improving School Attendance in Partnership, a scheme in partnership with the local authority, to raise punctuality in school attendance
Junior Muslim Circle (JMC) — Recreational activities for children
New Muslims' classes — Islamic teaching for new converts to Islam
ELM Evening Madrasah — after school education for children
Women's Link — support services for women
Healthy Living — health awareness and lifestyle facilities