It has been a long and at times arduous journey, the community has shown tremendous resolve and patience, but we are pleased to announce that construction work has commenced on the building of the new centre. With your prayers and assistance we have raised £3M towards the WLIC redevelopment project.
This falls woefully short of the £8.3 million that is required to complete the project, but we are confident that with your assistance we will be able to raise the necessary funds. Building works have started on site, the demolition programme commenced on Monday 7th August 2017 and the site was fully vacated on Sunday 6th of August 2017, daily prayers can be performed at Masjid Aysha, 4 Eccleston Road W13 0RL, the Masjid Aysha prayer timetable can be accessed here.
Arrangements for Jummah prayers were originally made at Hanwell Community Centre W7 1PD between August-December, they have now moved and from Friday 15th December 2017 will be held at the Lounge Royale, Chignell Place W13 0TJ, located to the rear of the new Masjid. The 1st Khutba will begin at 12pm and prayers will stand 12.20pm, the 2nd Khutba will commence at 12.40pm and stand at 1pm. There is no parking on Chignell Place.
The WLIC redevelopment is being project managed free of charge, by the construction arm of Henley Homes plc, the company have been long-term supporters of the Masjid. Historically Henley managed the planning submission resulting in a first application consent for the new building, with unanimous support from the local authority planning committee. Further information on the company can be found at www.henley-homes.co.uk
This is an ambitious project and many of us will never have an opportunity such as this in our lifetimes. The opportunity to build a Masjid and take part in the construction of the House of Allah (swt), an institution which will serve the community eternally. For us it will become a Sadiqah Jariyah, Insha’Allah, benefitting us long after we have departed. A project with such consequence should be given the utmost focus and the respect it deserves. There are numerous examples of Masjid construction projects, which lacked the requisite knowledge or experience required for successful delivery. These projects run for many years and during that period the community suffer great inconvenience, whilst the project stalls.
In order to learn from these mistakes, we have approached Henley for their assistance. They have made it clear that they are unable to accept any payments for works they are able to undertake and as such they have willingly agreed to use their considerable knowledge and experience in construction project management, to ensure that the scheme is delivered effectively and efficiently and to an exceptional standard of quality. Their team will provide all project management services including, on-site project management, architectural expertise and the use of their quantity surveying team to procure the various sub-contractors and suppliers that are required on site. These services will be provided Fee Sabee’Liliah, may Allah (swt) accept their endeavours and reward them abundantly. This further helps remove contractor profit margins, as we have the benefit of their considerable purchasing power to carefully control costs and quality.
At the behest of Henley and for the sake of transparency, all finances are being audited on an ongoing monthly basis by an independent committee, made up of members from the community who have volunteered for this role. Their remit is not technical, but simply to oversee the expenditure of community funds, with freedom to report openly and honestly on the processes followed, to anyone that may enquire.
There will be a small WLIC office positioned on site directly accessible from Singapore Road. This will be used for the purposes of fundraising and reporting updates for interested parties. There will be no access to the site whilst it is under construction for health and safety reasons.
The project is described as 3 phases, though the construction work will be delivered in one continuous phase, Insha’Allah.
Phase 1: This allows the occupation of the building at around month 9 of the construction programme, approximately late May 2018. Temporary facilities will be provided at ground floor level for both male and female visitors. These facilities will be able to accommodate around 600-700 people and Jummah prayers will reconvene on site.The cash-flow projects that the funds we currently have will be expended by December 2017, in order to conclude Phase 1 we will need to raise a further £1.7M urgently.
Phase 2: This allows for the building to be fully constructed (excluding the residential top floor). The ground and first floors will be completely fitted out with only the upper floors remaining. The cost of this phase is £1.5M
Phase 3: This involves the fit out of the remaining floors, the cost of this phase is £2.1M.
If you can help, get involved by emailing us, assist and make a family pledge or Qarde-e-Hasana loan which will be registered and honoured Insha’Allah. Multiply your rewards and benefit from the House of Allah as long as it stands, Please contribute and sponsor a Mussalah for £1000 here, a beautiful form of Sadaqah Jariyah (Recurring Charity) iether on your behalf, on behalf of a family member or a deceased loved one. Please make reference to the name of the person for whom you are donating. From September 2017 you can also visit the WLIC cabin office on site to donate cash, discuss Qarde-E-Hasana or set-up a standing order, please don’t forget to sign your Gift Aid form.
We would like to thank our friends, neighbours, brothers and sisters, past and present (may Allah grant our deceased a place in Jannah) who have helped us reach this exciting juncture and we pray that Allah (swt) aids us in fulfilling our vision of building a Masjid and Centre that will serve our future generations and help reflect a world city such as London.
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