The As-Suffa night shelter on Lionel Street near the City Centre with air mattresses and bedding ready for the evening attendees.
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Birmingham Muslims Give Shelter to Homeless This Winter

AboutIslam & Newspapers
09 January, 2020

Rough sleepers will be able to bunk down safely in a central location for as long as the cold snap lasts, thanks to Birmingham Muslims who are providing beds for the city’s homeless, Birmingham Mail reported.

“The problem of homelessness is increasing in the Midlands and the UK. We are now reaching crisis levels with people dying on the streets,” said Kamran Hussain, from Green Lane Masjid and Community Centre (GLMCC) in Small Heath.

“It’s important that faith and community groups do their part to help those in need. As an Islamic faith institute, we are required to take care of the poor and less fortunate.”

Coming together to help the homeless, members of GLMCC, Muslim Aid and the As-Suffa Institute pooled their resources, fundraising, and expertise to tackle the homeless problem blighting our streets.

“Many organizations don’t have the capacity to run a project as large as this. This requires finances, a huge volunteer base and a lot of organization and coordination,” Hussain said.

“By getting together it doesn’t put the hardship of running such a project onto one single organization.

“By housing the homeless, we will create a safe space for them and give them a little relief from their harsh lives.

“We will also have people who work with the homeless, to provide advice on how they can get themselves off the streets.”

Hussain added that the users would be provided with the help needed to get off the streets.

“We hope to get a number of the homeless into permanent accommodation. Many of the homeless find it hard to navigate through the benefits system to get access to financial support or housing.

“Last year, through our project at Green Lane, we managed to get about 10 people into housing, which was a huge achievement.”

The As-Suffa team distributes food to the homeless four times a week from their shelter on Lionel Street near the City Center.
The As-Suffa team distributes food to the homeless four times a week from their shelter on Lionel Street near the City Center.

Helping Homeless

British Muslims have been leading efforts to help the needy and homeless this winter season, and this has been so highly commendable, especially during Xmas occasions.

For instance, a Muslim-owned Cardiff restaurant opened its doors on Christmas Day to provide free food for homeless, vulnerable, and old people.

A local Birmingham Muslim charity Purpose of Life also organized a festive lunch in December to feed the city’s homeless and rough sleepers.

Britain’s oldest mosque also opened its doors on Wednesday, December 25, to host the needy, homeless, lonely, and elderly people for a Christmas lunch.

A group of Ahmadiyya Muslim youth also teamed up to deliver 10,000 meals to rough sleepers before December 31.