GOAL/AIM/MISSION : 

TO PROVIDE A SMALL PRIVATE SPACE IN ALL SHOPPING CENTRES/MALLS IN THE UK WITH A MULTI-FAITH/MEDITATION/QUIET ROOM/PRAYER ROOM (ABLUTION/WUDU/WASH FACILITIES WOULD BE A BONUS!) 

NOTE to the signatory: 

Dear signatory once you have signed this petition please log into your email and verify your signature through email otherwise it will not count and will be deleted off the supporter list (this has happened to most of my contacts and they had to re-sign). Please check your junk/trash/spam folders if it does not show up in your inbox. once you have confirmed through your email if you could kindly double check if your name shows on the “recent signers” list (if not please attempt to sign again). Please if you could share this petition with all of your contacts. thankyou kindly, your support is highly appreciated. lets make a big change together!

Hello there, i hope you are in good health and having a lovely day.

I am reaching out to yourselves as to make a very important lifechanging proposal.

I am a practicing muslim who offers her five daily prayers without fail (my faith is soaring at the moment because i recently retured from pilgrimage to makkah/medinah in saudi arabia).

This sunday gone i had an appointment with one of the stores based within one of the largest Shopping Centres in the UK. prayer time fell a few minutes after my appointment was over (i had planned it this way!). When i searched for a space to pray there was nothing available.

I have recently started exploring the world again after 20 years of isolation and agoraphobia. my younger self was an outdoor person but after graduating with a degree in chemistry and moving back into the family home i fell poorly and this sudden sickness left me with chronic stress, depression and anxiety. i dropped everything my booming career, my new house that i had just bought, all of my friends and even isolated myself away from my family. some years ago i found religion and that was a turning point and a cure to my depression, the anxiety is still there but i believe wholeheartedly it is this anxiety that is bringing me closer to my lord.

I was getting late for prayer. muslim prayer involves a small amount of space to stand, bow and finally prostate on the ground (when our forehead is on the ground the lowest place to be in this world this is when we are closest to our lord. we recite "glory be to my lord, the most high and this is when prayers are answered). 

It takes approximatley only 4-6 minutes to offer our prayer.

The store could not offer me anywhere to pray so i walked around and the first security guard i found coincidentally happened to be a muslim. i asked if there was a prayer room within the shopping centre and his answer was "no sorry there is not" he said "its quiet up there" and pointed at a spiral staircase. he said "you can offer your prayer there if you like", which i did. However this location was not ideal as it was in public view, close to the car park and there was concern for safety. 

Before we can carry out our prayers we need to wash certain parts of our body this is called "wudu" (ablution). we wash our private area in the toilet. then in the sink basin we wash our arms up until the elbows, our face, we wipe over half our head with wet hands and finally we wash our feet.

My very important lifechanging proposal was for all shopping centres in the United Kingdom to offer a designated small room/space/area. this would be best located somewhere close to the public toilets and in the toilets make available one cublicle with a bidet spray (so to be able to wash the private area), also to make available an ablution/wudu/wash basin as it would not go by etiquette to wash feet in a public sink especially when you have onlooking viewers! besides there would be a risk of safety washing feet in a tall public sink. (i have attached images of both of these with this email and they can be purchased at a very low cost). 

Beyond religious needs, this change would support mental health, inclusion and community wellbeing. After many years of living with severe anxiety and isolation, reconnecting with my faith and volunteering at my local mosque has transformed my mental health. Having access to prayer facilities in public spaces ensbles people like me to re-engage with the world without fear of compromising our religious duties.

This compromising does not take place when i am at the mosque and neither did this happen during my time in makkah/medinah (saudi arabia) i am not sure if you are aware of makkah/medinah (saudi arabia) it is one of the wealthiest countries in the world and the facilities/services they have on offer are just as good (if not better) than here in the UK, it is definitely not a developing/low income/least developed country as many might believe it to be. 

Offering prayer facilities in shopping centres would be an ultimate outcome i believe it will attract a wider audience because us muslim families actively choose shopping centres, attractions and venues that offer prayer facilities, providing these spaces would therefore encourage greater footfall, longer visits and a more welcoming environment for diverse communities. 

This multi-faith room benefits everyone serving as prayer space for shoppers, it will be a place for staff members working long shifts with limited personal space, a location for parents and carers seeking a calm moment during a busy day, an area for visitors of all backgrounds who may require a private moment of reflection.

I wholeheartedly believe it will serve as a wellness space, a place of peace, a location to de-stress, an area to reflect and much much much more.

Maybe this could be introduced as a trial programme as pilot period before anything permanent is set in place?

Thankyou for taking the time to consider this very important proposal.

I would appreciate comfirmation of receipt and any information regarding potential next steps. 

Yours sincerely

Faukhanda Ali