Places of worship face closure due to
Covid-19 pandemic

Picture Credit: Unsplash

Picture Credit: Unsplash

Places of worship are facing serious financial strain, with some at risk of permanent closure, as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic. 

Representatives from the Hindu, Muslim and Sikh faiths in London have expressed concern regarding a dramatic reduction in income. 

The Chairman of the Hindu Council UK, Umesh Sharma, revealed temples in Southampton, Crawley and Wales were “on the verge of closing down.”

He explained: “They are putting money from their own pockets to keep things open, they do not know how long they will be able to do that."

Hindu temples which are dependent on in-person visits are particularly struggling.

Sharma said religious temples were “a lifeline for our community” and “it would be very sad if any temple had to close. 

“I hope they manage to wear out these couple of weeks and hopefully this lockdown will be lifted and we will have some kind of normality.”

Sharma is also Chairman of the Shree Ram Mandir in Ealing.

The temple experienced a fall in annual income of over £250,000 since the national lockdown in March. 

The Hindu temple raised £357,000 from donations and service fees from March 2019 to 2020. 

However, since March last year, the temple has received just over £70,000.

“Temples in Southall and others in Ealing are well within community reach and very well established - financially we are very sound. Many temples in remote areas are finding it very hard," he said. 

Places of worship have been unable to celebrate religious events as usual. 

In normal circumstances, the Shree Ram Mandir receives £7,000 on the week of the religious festival of Diwali. 

Due to the imposition of the national lockdown in November last year, the temple received only £1,500. 

Despite the financial concerns, the Chairman remains optimistic. 

He said: “Even if [temples] have to close down I am very sure that our community will be able to restart and reopen.”

Gurpreet Singh Anand, Secretary General of the Sikh Council UK

Gurpreet Singh Anand, Secretary General of the Sikh Council UK

The Sikh Council UK revealed all member Gurdwara Sahibs have reported an annual fall in income of between 50-75% in 2020. 

The Council also reported 60% of members have expressed concerns that they do not have enough reserves to see them through another six months of lockdown. 

Gurpreet Singh Anand, Secretary General of the Sikh Council, said: “Some [Gurdwaras] are getting to the point that their reserves are nearly depleted.” 

Furthermore, although no Gurdwara in the UK has permanently closed since the beginning of the pandemic, the Secretary General said: “We have seen some express that they may end up in that situation in 2021 if things do not change.”

According to the Council's survey results, 94% of members reported a major decrease in annual income and 50% were unaware of available support.

Most Gurdwaras rely on donations and payments for wedding and prayer services.

Despite many places of worship accepting online donations, Mr Anand explained older worshippers were less likely to do so. 

The Secretary General suggested some Gurdwaras may have to consider recruiting younger management teams in order to ensure financial stability in the future. 

“We’ve noticed where they have younger management teams, they’ve been better able to adapt,” he said. 

Anand, President of the Khalsa Jatha British Isles Gurdwara in Notting Hill, said he has not received any government support for the place of worship. 

He continued: “I’m not too certain whether the government necessarily understands the value of faith institutions. 

“MPs definitely love to have their photos taken and visit gurdwaras and other places of worship, they do know the work we do but for some reason there seems to be a lack of political will to support that.”

Gurpreet Singh Anand, Secretary General of the Sikh Council UK

Gurpreet Singh Anand, Secretary General of the Sikh Council UK

The Secretary General also emphasised the importance of Gurdwaras for the Sikh community.

He said: “When we go to the Gurdwara we get that sense of community and bliss and solace from our faith.

“This network of Gurdwaras that exists across the country is a great establishment to have happened within the last 100 years and it would be a shame to lose them.”

Picture Credit: Unsplash

Picture Credit: Unsplash

It is not only Hindu and Sikh places of worship that are facing financial difficulties but also Islamic faith institutions. 

Dr Suhel Miah, Trustee at the Hounslow Muslim Centre, said: “It’s really bad in terms of finances because when the Masjid is closed we don’t have even one penny coming in.”

The Hounslow Muslim Centre usually receives approximately £8,000 a month in donations. 

In the last three weeks, they have received an estimated £1,500-£2,000.

The Centre is increasingly relying on online donations, which they hope will rise in the lead-up to the Islamic holy month of Ramadan. 

He said: “Somehow we will have to manage and fight through this, through volunteering and asking individuals to donate.

“I can assure you [the Mosque] won’t close but it is a really tough time.”

Hassan Joudi, the Mosque Affairs Coordinator at the Muslim Council of Britain, said: “A lot of mosques are really feeling the impact.” 

Joudi highlighted the reduction in donations provoked many Mosques to “think about financial stability and technology” including the introduction of contactless payment in places of worship. 

Joudi said: “A bigger worry is not so much the closure of buildings, but more about doing events that their local community needs. 

“Now they’re going to spend a lot more time worried about paying the bills which will distract them from doing the good work that they need to be doing.” 

Most places of worship for South-Asian communities were built in the UK following post-war migration from South Asia and East Africa.

They were primarily established through local fundraising within such communities. 

Dr Jasjit Singh, Associate Professor at the University of Leeds, explained for first-generation South-Asian migrants in the UK: “Places of worship often acted as safe havens, as sanctuaries to meet where attendees could meet others who were also getting used to the experience of living in Britain.

“Community was really important because wider society often felt so alien – these were comfortable places where attendees wouldn’t face the discrimination they often faced elsewhere, particularly in the Britain of the late 1960s in which the words of Enoch Powell were still resonating.”

For diaspora communities Dr Singh said “these weren’t just places of worship” but “a statement for the community itself which brought a sense of achievement.”