Mosques open to public for weekend event

Eight mosques in Leicester and Leicestershire are taking part in the event

Mosques across Britain are to open to the public as part of an event to inform local communities.

Visit My Mosque, organised by the Muslim of Council of Britain (MCB), is the largest open day mosque open day event in the UK.

More than 200 mosques will be opening their doors this weekend.

Yasmin Surti from Leicestershire, where eight mosques are taking part, said: "People will be able to see what happens in a mosque and ask questions."

'Bridging those gaps'

Mrs Surti, from the Federation of Muslim Organisations (FMO) Leicestershire, said the annual event - which has been running for seven years - had been forced to go virtual during the pandemic, meaning this was the first time since then communities could visit in person.

"It's effectively opening the mosques to the general public," she said.

"It's a family event, so children are welcome, and there are usually refreshments and activities.

"It's very much about helping people understand and bridging those gaps between communities."

In Leicester and Leicestershire, participating mosques include Masjid Umar, on Evington Road, Masjid Al-Husayn, on Duxbury Road, Masjid Quba on Tichbourne Street, the Leicester Turkish Education Centre, on Saffron Lane, Masjid Al-Ameen, on Sandhurst Street, Masjid al Quba, on Brunswick Street, As-Salaam Trust, on Thurncourt Road, and Masjid Bhukari, on Loughborough Road.

Secretary general of the Muslim Council of Britain Zara Mohammed said: "Now in its seventh year, Visit My Mosque continues to see mosques across the UK open their doors to local communities, providing a space in which conversation, understanding and friendship can develop, whilst also helping challenge misconceptions around Islam and Muslims."