Forest Gate – Minhaj-Ul Quran Mosque

I have visited this Masjid a few times in the last year and have enjoyed its community spirit. Founded by Dr Tahir-ul Qadri it is under the umbrella of Minhaj-Ul Quran International  

The doors to the ladies section is on the far right of the building, when entering you will walk straight down to find toilets and Wudhu facilities to the left and prayer space through the doors to the right. The prayer space is a number of rooms located at the back of the main prayer hall. Although the layout is a unconventional I appreciate that it does not feel as closed off as other spaces; with a glass window separating the sections. The ladies section door is not always open during the week, so to enter you must go through the main entrance and go to the rooms at the back, they are easy to find.

There are some Mosque institutions that create a sense of awkwardness with the presence of women in the main space; however this Mosque is free flowing with young female students using the library and walking through the main reception. The community is predominantly Pakistani but has a varied range of user groups and ages. What I really liked was how warm and welcoming the young people were, especially their resident Alimiah students.

In terms of facilities the toilets aren’t great, sad to say that they need a real clean. The ladies prayer space also seemed very ‘used’, I am aware that they have regular adult and children classes throughout the week but a good hoovering is required (and maybe a carpet cleaner).

They also have a newly built funeral service space (Ghusl Kanna) that is probably one of the best I have seen in London so far, a lot of time and consideration has gone into its planning, with how to bring in the deceased most effectively; to a designated space away from the prayer hall for the family and friends of the deceased to congregate.

The Masjid is very active and has regular events and functions for the whole community. They also host the Muslim Women’s league and have their own Radio show called ReviveFM. I have received overwhelmingly good vibes from this space but they do need to maintain the space, especially considering their location they will get many one-off visits.