England’s oldest mosque is undergoing a £3 million refurbishment in an effort to restore the building to its former glory. The mosque, on the ground floor of a 19th century grade II-listed building in Liverpool, was established in 1889 by Henry William Quilliam, who converted to Islam after visiting Morocco, adopting the name Abdullah Quilliam. Multi-disciplinary firm Comtechsa has been appointed to manage the restoration of the derelict building, at 8 Brougham Terrace, on behalf of the Abdullah Quilliam Society (AQS), which was set up to save the structure from dereliction.
Restoration is being carried out in three stages to allow the AQS to raise the funds to complete the work. The first phase, involving weatherproofing of the roof, has been completed. The second stage will restore the interior and exterior to its original state and install an Islamic museum, bookshop, library and art gallery inside the premises. Mumin Khan, AQS chief executive, said: “The aim of this project is to return the building to its former British Islamic glory. “We would like it to become… a centre of excellence where the entire community can come to learn about Islam.” Arlene Martin reports.
