| Al-Mizan Charitable Trust | |
| Type: | Organisation |
| Founded Date: | October 2011 |
| Registration Id: | 7228603 |
| Founder: | Mohammed S. Mamdani[1] |
| Location: | Acton, London, England, UK |
| Key People: | Judith Pfeiffer[2] Roger Chester Imam Sikander Pathan Chris Hewer Ali Orr[3] |
| Area Served: | United Kingdom |
| Focus: | Poverty in the United Kingdom, Homelessness, Debt |
Al-Mizan Charitable Trust (AMCT), is a Muslim-run charity that supports vulnerable families and individuals living in poverty across the United Kingdom,[4] regardless of their faith or cultural background.[5]
Al-Mizan Charitable Trust was founded in October 2011 by Mohammed Sadiq Mamdani, a social entrepreneur, who founded other charities including Muslim Youth Helpline, Ansar Youth Project and most recently Sufra.[6] Al-Mizan Charitable Trust is the UK's first Muslim grant-funder that supports individuals living in poverty, regardless of their faith or cultural background. Every month, the Trust receives more than 40 applications for financial support, of which only half of eligible applications can be supported with a grant or interest-free loan of up to £500. Although the Trust prioritises applications which provide long-term benefit, rising poverty and unemployment have forced the charity to consider funding more and more applications for basic household and subsistence costs.[7]
The main activity of Al-Mizan Charitable Trust is to distribute grants of up to 500GBP to people in crisis. The grants they distribute to poor families are used to buy items such as mattresses and school uniforms.[8] They also distribute food to poor families struggling to afford the cost of food, distributing approximately 1,000 food packets during the month of Ramadan in 2015.
Al-Mizan Charitable Trust is the parent organization of Sufra, a food bank in London. During its first six months in operation, Sufra handed out food to 20–40 families each week, feeding approximately 3,000 people.[9]
Al-Mizan Charitable Trust has prioritised five aims of its organisation.[10]