British Winchester Muslims Buy Historic Hall for a Mosque

London, MINA – The Muslim Cultural Association of Winchester, a historic cathedral city in Country Hampshie, south-east England, has agreed to purchase the historic Hyde Parish Hall in the heart of the city for use as a mosque.

The association has been looking for a home for the last 20 years and identified Hyde Parish Hall for the mosque and community center.

The hall was recently sold by the Parochial Church Council (PCC) of St Bartholomew’s Church to fund repairs and maintenance of the medieval church. Hampshire Chronicle reported on Thursday.

In a Facebook post, the association said, “The sale of Hyde Parish Hall has generated interest and the WMCA is one of the interested parties”.

“The WMCA Committee met several times and sought advice from property owners and developers in our community and made presentations to the Friday Prayers,” the association continued.

The Muslim Community of Winchester agreed that a bid of £700K should be offered for the purchase of Hyde Parish Hall, given its suitability for our purposes, the nature of the building listed and the anticipated repair work.

“The WMCA Committee is seeking references from our local MP Steve Brine and partner organization Winchester City of Sanctuary to submit our offer,” the statement added.

“Alhamdulillah, our bid for Hyde Parish Hall has been accepted and the formal chairman of the term has been issued. Lawyers have now become involved.”

“The Committee feels that with our community’s response that the £250K (Rp 4.8 billion) shortfall plus repairs and emergency funds this amount could easily be raised with a coherent and clear fundraising strategy,” he said.

The association has launched a Just Giving page to help fund purchases. (T/RE1/P2)

Mi’raj News Agency (MINA)