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trustee Niaz Mohammed and Sheikh Mohammed Iqbal Qadri outside the Academy
trustee Niaz Mohammed and Sheikh Mohammed Iqbal Qadri outside the Academy

HOMELESS

Steve Hammond
3/ 8/2004

ONE of the most long standing and respected Islamic organisations in Greater Manchester fears it may be 'put out onto the streets'.
The Islamic Academy is facing a crisis after the former chapel it occupies has been named as the most 'at risk' historic building in the region by the conservation body English Heritage.
The former Welsh Baptist Chapel on Upper Brook Street, Manchester, was designed over 150 years ago by the architect responsible for the Houses of Parliament, Charles Barry.
It now needs £500,000 of emergency repairs and an extra £700,000 to make it fully functional.
English Heritage are in talks with the chapel's owner, Manchester City Council to put together a plan for the buildings future use but because of the large sums involved its exclusive use as a mosque and teaching centre is threatened.
Said English Heritage assistant north west director Henry Owen-John: 'To attract grants of this size there must be a viable future plan for the chapel that justifies this spending. This must include the buildings uses which must be significant to justify such expenditure.'
One source of finance could be the huge fund English Heritage and the lottery manage for the repair of significant religious buildings.
In the past grants from the fund of up to £300,000 have gone almost totally to Christian churches though some synagogues and Indian temples have qualified.
But no mosques or Islamic buildings have ever been awarded a grant.
Asked if the Academy's chapel should benefit from such a grant, Mr Owen-John said it did not qualify as a religious building as, apart from prayers and religious services, other activities like outreach work in the Asian community was conducted from there.
The Academy, who have rented the chapel from the city council for 35 years and its elders are extremely concerned over its future.
Said trustee Niaz Mohammad: 'We are being treated most unjustly. We have never asked for a penny from the city council in fact we have spent thousands of our own money on the building.
'We even spent £16,000 on employing a structural engineer and an architect to draw up plans for repair and improvement to the building. We gave these to the council and English Heritage more than three years ago but they have done nothing.
'The work of the Academy is very important. Only recently the BBC approached us to set up courses in Islam for its journalists.'
Academy director, Dr Allama Khalid Mahmoud, who has a Phd in comparative religion, said they were facing a tragedy.
'We came into this building in 1974. It was a church and through our efforts we have kept it going as a place of religion for the whole community. We very much want it to stay that way.'
The chapel is one of Greater Manchester finest and most historic religious buildings. It was built in 1839 and was designed by Barry, the famous architect of the Palace of Westminster, which houses the Commons and the Lords. He was responsible for many important buildings in the north west including the magnificent Gothic Rochdale Town Hall.


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