First Muslim Charities Convention celebrates the achievements of £700 million Muslim charity sector as regulator praises contribution to civil society

The Chair of the Charity Commission and the Chief Executive of the Fundraising Regulator joined the Shadow Minister for Local Government, Faith and Communities in applauding the impactful, far-reaching and growing work of the UK’s Muslim charities at the first national Muslim Charities Convention in London on October 12. 

“Muslim charities and those inspired by the Muslim faith have made a vast contribution to the well-being of our country for generations,” said Orlando Fraser KC, who has chaired the charity regulator since 2022 and was a keynote speaker at the convention. “I saw it personally in the aftermath of the awful Grenfell Tower fire, when I worked with a local charity as part of its response to the tragedy, and I saw how local places of worship of all faiths, including Islam, drew together and coordinated donations and support for those displaced.  

“I saw it during the pandemic, when mosques and faith groups worked at speed to respond to the needs of their communities, delivering essential food and medicines to those who were shielding, and providing a lifeline of comfort and friendship to the vulnerable and the lonely. I’ve seen it in the response to the recent humanitarian disasters in Morocco and Libya, where Muslim charities have been working on the front line to provide vital life-saving help to the victims and ongoing support to the survivors.” 

Mr Fraser paid tribute to Muslim Charities Forum for its “important role in providing advice and support to trustees and staff, and for speaking collectively on behalf of over 400 organisations that it represents”. He singled out international aid charities for particular praise, calling them “fantastic ambassadors for the British people, nurturing goodwill, friendship, and mutual respect”, and adding that many Muslim charities are “shining examples” of those whose faith “often opens doors allowing them to work in regions that might otherwise be hard for British charity to reach”. He encouraged Muslim charities to make use of the Commission’s recent guidance on campaigning and the use of social media, and expressed the hope that more young people and women from the Muslim community will get involved with charities as trustees. 

The Muslim Charities Convention, the first event of its kind in the UK, was the culmination of four months of hard work by Muslim Charities Forum (MCF), supported by ten key event partners. It brought together 300 delegates, 40 speakers, 12 facilitators and 26 exhibitors for a day of learning, networking, capacity building, problem solving and collaboration. The theme was ‘The blessings of the collective’, emphasising the huge potential of Muslim charities to work together to expand their work and increase their impact in cooperation with others. The programme included nine workshops on a wide range of topics, from safeguarding to cybersecurity, and from fundraising to crisis management. 

The convention was opened by Fadi Itani, MCF’s CEO. “Alhamdulillah, today we celebrate the history and the maturing of the Muslim charity and voluntary sector within the extensive, outstanding fabric of British civil society,” he said. “But before we get carried away with the celebration, we must acknowledge and state that although we have plenty of opportunities to move forward even further, we still have many challenges.” 

Fadi Itani’s speech asserted that “the UK’s Muslim charities have been quietly but effectively building a huge amount of positive work here at home” alongside the work in international aid and development for which they are better known. “Our mapping has established that there are over 450 Muslim-led charitable and community organisations hard at work here in the UK, and this does not even include our mosques, who also do or support a huge amount of charitable work,” he said. “Forty-five per cent of these organisations are led by women, demonstrating a dynamism and a huge amount of potential there that needs to be recognised and encouraged. Forty-two per cent of people who benefit from the services these 450 organisations deliver are not from the Muslim community, demonstrating a commitment to meeting people’s needs across society.” 

The all-day event, held in London, consisted of key discussion panels and break-out sessions covering a range of topics including Pioneering Women featuring Baroness Bennett, UK Domestic Priorities and Volunteering, Safeguarding, Charity Investment and Trust and Foundation funding. Delegates were also able to experience exhibitions from a range of partners and organisations to support their work and network with colleagues from around the UK.

The conference was opened by special guest and keynote speaker, Sarah Owen MP – Shadow Minister for Local Government, Faith and Communities:

“From food banks to night shelters, warm spaces to befriending the elderly, our faith groups are stepping up where the state has stepped back,” Ms Owen said. “Amidst the challenges domestically that we are dealing with – the cost-of-living crisis, child poverty, homelessness – your organisations put into action the beautiful values shared amongst the Muslim communities: compassion, generosity and service. Whether it’s providing vital food, financial support, healthcare, access to education, or emergency relief, I am grateful for each and every one of you and the organisations you are part of, for all that you do.” 

Delegates to the event were also delighted to hear from Gerald Oppenheim, CEO of the Fundraising Regulator, who spoke in a workshop on ethical fundraising at the convention. In highlighting the regulator’s role as a source of advice and guidance as well as a handler of complaints, he complimented the “impressive” pioneering achievements of Muslim charities in the field of digital marketing. He flagged up the planned publication of a new fundraising code in 2025, which he promised would be a “slimmed down” document, addressing new developments in digital fundraising and artificial intelligence but removing “certain things that are clogging it up and making it too complicated”.  

In concluding the convention, Moazzam Malik CMG, Chair of MCF, thanked speakers, partners, exhibitors and guests and outlined MCF’s priorities and key takeaways.

Thank you to all who attended and for your support and contribution.