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Awards

Follow the links below to see details of the finalists and winners of each award.

Young Entrepreneur of the Year - Science and Technology - Arts and Culture - Community Leadership - Young Volunteer of the Year - Excellence in Education - Interfaith - International - Media - Sports - Mosaic Mentor of the Year

 

Judging Panel

The Judging Panel was chaired by HRH Princess Badiya bint El Hassan of Jordan, Chairman of Mosaic.  The other panel members were: John O'Brien, Managing Director, Mosaic; Samia Ahmed, Senior Development Education Coordinator, Islamic Relief; Professor Jim Al-Khalili, Professor of Physics, University of Surrey; Shahid Azeem, Managing Director, Acrom IT; Lord Bhatia, Crossbencher, House of Lords; Ikram Butt, Connecting Communities Manager, Leeds Rugby Foundation; Dame Julia Cleverdon DCVO CBE, Vice- President, BITC; Dr Harriet Crabtree, Director, Interfaith Network; Professor El-Gomati, Professor of Electron Physics, University of York; Stephen Howard, CEO, BITC; Imam Monawar Hussain, Muslim Tutor, Eton College; Nash Jaffer, Tax Consultant, Ernst & Young; Sarah Joseph, Editor- in- Chief, Emel; Richard Locke, Managing Director, Fenchurch Advisory Partners; John May, Director, Young Enterprise; Bishop Nick of Croydon; Chantel Noel, Penguin Rights Director, Penguin; Yasir Mirza, Head of Diversity, Guardian; Nabila Sadiq, Board Member, Mosaic; Khalid Sharif, Managing Director, Ummah Foods; Professor Yasir Suleiman, Director of Centre of Islamic Studies, Cambridge University; Peter Sanders, Photographer and Owner, Peter Sanders Photography Limited; Tariq Shah, Executive Director, Vigo Group; Tidjane Thiam, CEO, Prudential; Sue Wallace- Shadad, Programme Leader, British Council; Yasmin Waljee, Head of Pro Bono, Hogan Lovells; Abdullah Zein Al-Abidin , Chairman, Iwaan

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Young Entrepreneur of the Year                                                                                              

Outstanding achievement in setting up and/or running a business or social initiative by a young Muslim person or a predominantly Muslim group of young people.

Finalists

Zouk Ltd - Winner

Zouk Ltd runs the award winning Halal Indian restaurant, Zouk Tea Bar in Bradford, Yorkshire and Zouk Restaurant in Manchester. Zouk is the brainchild of a dedicated family team, with over 25 years of experience in the restaurant industry. Beyond their business success, Zouk has set up cooking classes that show Indian food can be healthy. Zouk is committed to sustainability, focussing on recycling and works closely together with local schools.

Umbar Shakir

Having put herself through University, Umbar left with an Honours degree whilst taking care of her family. After a successful career as an international strategy consultant, Umbar embarked on a new career as a photographer. After a few years of building up her brand and her skills, Umbar is steadily becoming one of the most acknowledged fashion photographers whose works have been published in Elle USA, The Sunday Observer, Emirates Woman, and Asiana magazine.

Bilal Hussain

Bilal Hussain is an inspiring and talented individual. He studied Aeronautical Engineering at City University and during his time there he helped set up a successful fundraising initiative called Charity Week For Children. In 2009, this initiative managed to raise almost £350,000 in one week across the UK that went to child-centric projects across the globe. After graduating, Bilal went on to set-up a successful business. Working from his offices he is able to continue his passion for community and charitable work.

Sponsored by Ernst & Young

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Science and Technology

Outstanding contribution to the advancement of science and technology by a young Muslim or a predominantly Muslim group of young people.

Finalists

1001 Inventions - Winner

Launched in 2006, 1001 Inventions was created by the Foundation for Science, Technology and Civilisation (FSTC), a British based non-profit, non-religious and academic organisation. Working with the world's leading academics, 1001 Inventions engages with the public through educational media and interactive global exhibitions that highlight the shared cultural and scientific inheritance of humanity. 1001 Inventions is a global educational initiative that promotes awareness of a thousand years of scientific and cultural achievements from Muslim civilisations and how these contributions helped build the foundations of our modern world.

Dr Sabena Sultan

Dr Sabena Sultan is a highly regarded research scientist working for Kings College London. After completing a PhD from Imperial College, she went on to gain a cross-sectorial fellowship between industry and academia. Dr Sultan is now a principal grant investigator after successfully writing a British Heart Foundation project grant application. Dr Sultan is a STEMNET ambassador, working to raise the aspirations of the next generation and encouraging them to set foot in the scientific world and take it by storm.

Sajid Riasat

Sajid is a scientist by profession with a passion for Islamic history and the Islamic Scientific contribution to civilisation. Sajid teaches young people at the local mosque after work on weekdays on Islamic studies and the contributions of Muslim scientists and their inventions. Sajid also hosts a programme on Noor TV called 'Science and Islam' and gives presentations in local schools and colleges.

Sponsored by Google -

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Arts and Culture                                                              

Recognition of a young Muslim who has excelled in or made a significant contribution to the Arts.

Finalists

Conor Ibrahiem - Winner

Arakan Creative is a new, Islamic theatre company based in Bradford, West Yorkshire that dramatises the rich and diverse stories within the Islamic world. Through drama they challenge cultural ill-practice within the SouthAsian community and focus on education, delivering creatively on the curriculum through Creative Partnerships. The man behind the success is Conor Ibrahiem, a professional actor and scriptwriter, who wanted to combine his faith of Islam with his artistic practice.

Uzma Hasan

Uzma is a film producer whose most recent project was The Infidel, written by David Baddiel and starring Omid Djalili, the critical and commercial success that tackles difficult and topical issues of faith in an accessible way. Uzma started her career with no connections in the film industry and is one of the very few Muslim film producers working in the UK. Being the first British Muslim to produce a mainstream feature film, Uzma's influence is felt strongly in the film industry.

Zamana Foundation

The Zamana Foundation is founded on the belief that by actively encouraging an increased understanding and engagement in our diverse cultures we can come closer to building a pluralist society. They believe that dialogue and the arts have the creative potential to promote a pluralism that brings us closer to a society that is cohesive and enriched by its diversity. The Foundation takes pride in drawing on the expertise of those, irrespective of faith or background, who share their values.

Sponsored by Penguin -

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Community Leadership

Recognition of an individual or organisation that has delivered real impact in building stronger communities in disadvantaged areas in the UK.

Finalists

Sergeant Khizra Bano Dhindsa - Winner

Sergeant Khizra Dhindsa is a Sergeant with the West Midlands Police where she serves as Diversity Champion for the Local Policing Unit. Sergeant Dhindsa's work in respect of the Matchbox Estate of Shard End, which had historically suffered from an extremely high level of crime and anti-social behaviour, is particularly noteworthy. When Sergeant Dhindsa took the area on in 2008, she decided enough was enough. As a result of Sergeant's Dhindsa's strategies, crime and anti-social behaviour dropped by 42% on the estate. More importantly, there was a 33% increase in the number of residents now happy to live on the Estate.

Youthink

Youthink was set up after the murder of a close friend of  Yasmin Olaad. She wanted the gang culture to stop within Leicester and enable young people to live more productive lives. Yasmin decided to create an organisation run completely by young people which aims to give young people of the city something productive to do and to improve the city in which they live. Youthink has worked with churches to organise soup kitchens, on programmes to help homeless people, started up a campaign against drug use and held masterclasses for students enabling them to improve their exam results.

Dr Mohammed Amran

Mohammed Amran comes from an inner city area of Bradford, which has very high levels of unemployment, poverty, crime and drugs. He left school with no formal qualifications and later obtained a BTEC first and BTEC national diploma. Due to circumstance and experience he has been engaged in a full programme of work with young people. He studied to gain a professional qualification in Youth and Community Work and has selflessly worked for and on behalf of other people in need and has taken these representations to the highest authorities without fear or trepidation.

Sponsored by Islamic Relief -

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Young Volunteer of the Year    

Recognition of an individual who has delivered significant change in support of young people in disadvantaged communities through their voluntary effort.

Finalists

Faisal Rajput - Winner

Faisal has been volunteering three hours a week for Muslim Youth Helpline (MYH) for more than two years. Since October 2008, Faisal has attended more than 200 weekly shifts at MYH, totalling more than 600 hours and responding to over 5000 calls, emails and letters. In addition, Faisal has supported a variety of events across the UK aimed at promoting the work of MYH and reaching out to potential service users.

Jaffer Ali Hussain

Jaffer is currently studying a BA Joint Honours in English Language and Politics. He is a part time Youth Worker whereby he enables young people to have a voice on issues that have effect on a local, regional and national level.  A former Youth MP of his town, he represented the voice of young people locally, regionally and nationally. He founded Project Safe Space, a national project run by the UK Youth Parliament whereby young people from the nine regions of England were given the chance to discuss terrorism, violent extremism, working with the Police and Youth Leadership.

Adam Hopley

From a working class background, Adam lives and was educated in Blackburn, Lancashire. Adam's background has given him a real understanding of social mobility, an issue for which he has a real passion. Adam attended Blackburn 6th form College and applied for the Career Academy Programme in his first year. He successfully graduated through the programme and has now started the second year of his degree in Accounting & Economics at Lancaster University. The Career Academy programme offers opportunities to students, including a Mentoring scheme, Guru lectures, visits and seminars and a six week paid internship.

Sponsored by Iwaan Business & Lifestyle -

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Excellence in Education                                               

To reward significant contribution by an individual or organisation which has made an extraordinary contribution to supporting young Muslims and others to excel in their education.

Finalists

Shaukat Warraich and Slough Community School - Winner

Slough Community School (SCS) is an example of hard work, consistency and good will. Using one of the main town's mosques as a base it has run every Saturday morning for 10 years. Overseen by a motivational head teacher, Shaukat Warraich, and a brilliant group of committed staff (many of them volunteers) SCS aims to supplement the mainstream education of the children in maths and English as well as subjects such as personal development and Islamic history.

One Degree

One Degree is the brainchild of investment banker Adnan Jaffery. One Degree aims to raise the aspirations of failing students from disadvantaged schools by boosting academic performance and promoting self belief.  It initially ran at Crest Boys Academy with great success. It had a student attendance rate of over 95%, and more applicants for the programme than could be accommodated. Over the six weeks of the programme, a remarkable improvement was shown by students and saw Crest Academy going from a 20% pass rate placing it as London's lowest performing school to a 43% pass rate which has made it the most improved Academy.

Waverley School, Birmingham

Waverley School is situated in the most deprived area of Birmingham, catering for students aged 11-16. The School is lead by Mr Kamal Hanif who was the youngest Head Teacher in the UK when he took the post in 2005. Mr Hanif restructured the staffing of the school and now includes a more diverse (43 different nationalities) staff to reflect his commitment to giving students an 'outward facing' approach to school and their lives beyond it. He has nurtured international links with Pakistan, Holland, Canada, South Africa and other countries to reinforce the diverse ethos of the school and the goal of the highest measure of success for any student, at anytime and anywhere.

Sponsored by Fenchurch Advisory Partners -

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Interfaith

Recognition of an individual or group committed to promoting dialogue and collaboration between faith groups and delivering real impacts that bring faith groups and others together to deliver social benefit.

Finalists

Nadeem Javaid - Winner

Nadeem ran a year-long campaign to bring different faith communities together to tackle global poverty with a particular focus on reducing the number of deaths in developing countries due to malaria. In this role he organised events, delivered workshops and presentations and provided training sessions for volunteers. Nadeem was then selected for the Government's Young Muslims Advisory Group where he advises senior government ministers on Muslim youth issues. Through this work he has helped to build a movement of young people who are committed to interfaith collaboration to tackle local and global issues.

Annouar Kassim and Milton Keynes Islamic Arts Heritage and Culture Organisation

Through its workshops, exhibitions and seminars, the Milton Keynes Islamic Arts Heritage and Culture Organisation (MKIAHC) pioneered by Anouar Kassim has used the rich culture and heritage of Islamic Art to actively involve members of the Muslim and wider communities in Milton Keynes  to reach out and involve everyone in active appreciation of Islamic Arts & Culture. This work  has very positively contributed towards the breaking down of barriers and earned mutual respect and understanding between Muslims and non Muslims regionally. 

exChange at Blackburn Cathedral

exChange is a programme established by Canon Chris Chivers and Anjum Anwar MBE at Blackburn Cathedral. exChange promotes dialogue and discussion and tackles mistrust and division within communities. exChange focuses on extremely sensitive issues, building bridges in a number of different community settings and championing youth leadership. Over the last five years, exChange has engaged with over 75,000 citizens globally, helped to set up 'Women's Voice' a grass roots movement and addressed MPs, the Council of Europe, the Lambeth Conference and Global Unity Conference.

Sponsored by Tidjane Thiam

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International                                                                                                                                   

Awarded in recognition of a young Muslim person or predominantly Muslim group of young people delivering real impacts of social benefit in those countries in which Mosaic operates.

Finalists

Korvi Rakshand Dhrubo - Winner

Korvi Rakshand Dhrubo is a 25-year-old Bangladeshi who has dedicated his life to breaking the cycle of poverty through education. This young University of London graduate left his comfortable, wealthy life to start a youth based movement, which today is called the JAAGO Foundation. The JAAGO Foundation is youth-based organization which operates a free of cost English Medium School that provides education of international standard to the impoverished children coming from the slums of Rayer Bazar and also conducts programs concerning woman empowerment; employment creation; superior health and hygiene.

Jordan River Foundation

The Jordan River Foundation (JRF) is a non-profit non-governmental organization in Jordan chaired by Her Majesty Queen Rania Al Abdullah.  JRF's mission is to promote, in partnership with stakeholders, the development of a dynamic Jordanian society, by supporting sustainable social, economic and cultural programs that empower communities based on their needs and priorities. JRF has two main areas of concentration: protecting the rights and needs of children through the Child Safety Program (CSP); and, supporting individuals and communities through the Community Empowerment Program (CEP) and the Capacity Building and Business Development Services (CBBDS).

Yilmaz Akinci

Yilmaz Akinci is a journalist from Turkey, who works with Al Jazeera having worked previously for ABC News, CNN, NPR and others. Yilmaz also works for a development centre in Diyarbakır, where he seeks to support women's employment opportunities and pressing social problems in South East Turkey, such as poverty and unemployment. He also provides support to those with disabilities. Yilmaz believes strongly in his desire to integrate the people between the East and West of Turkey.

Sponsored by Etihad Airways -

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Media

To reward significant contribution by a young Muslim in the media or to an individual/organisation which has made a significant contribution to improving understanding of Islam/Muslims in the media. 

Finalists

Mehdi Hasan - Winner

Mehdi Hasan is senior politics editor at the New Statesman and a former news and current affairs editor at Channel 4. At 29, Mehdi was the youngest editor in commissioning at Channel 4 where he worked on the award-winning Dispatches documentary strand. Mehdi studied Politics, Philosophy and Economics at Christ Church, Oxford University. He has appeared on the BBC1's Question Time programme and on BBC2's Newsnight. He is also a contributor to the Guardian and the Times newspapers, and gives lectures and talks at political, media and faith-related conferences and seminars across the country.

Abrar Hussain

Abrar Hussain has been a trailblazer for Islamic media in the UK for many years now. His productions have touched on many important issues relating to the Muslim community including mosques, inter-faith, entertainment, music and charity. Abrar's work has contributed to altering the perception of Islamic media in the west by modernizing the "look and feel" of productions and raising the quality expectations of the Muslim audience. As well as setting the standards for others to follow Abrar has proactively encouraged the Muslim community to express themselves through media and has provided knowledge and skills transfer through mentoring in schools and community groups.

Radical Middle Way

The Radical Middle Way (RMW) seeks to increase awareness and understanding of traditional Islamic teachings in a modern western context to the Muslim population in the UK. Since 2005, RMW has brought thousands of young people into contact with leading scholars of Islam from all over the world. Their website offers an immense database of media content which documents talks, iKhutabs (sermons), and seminars from around the Muslim world and audio files as well as in-house filmed documentaries. Their programmes range from traditional Islamic teaching to arts and crafts and music initiatives, ensuring RMW attracts people from the entire scope of the Islamic faith.

Sponsored by The Guardian -

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Sports                                                                                                                                                 

Recognition of a young Muslim person who has excelled in sport or an individual or organisation that has made a positive contribution to society through a sporting initiative.

Finalists

Wadhah Saleh - Winner

Wadhah is an exemplary young man who has reached the pinnacle of a sporting career at a young age. He has combined this with the highest Islamic achievement of having memorised the Holy Quran. Seventeen year old Wadhah, who lives in Toxteth in Liverpool, has achieved 12 world titles in Shotokan Karate. He has competed in New York, Chicago, Malta over the past 5 years. From a Yemeni background, Wadhah mentors other children from the Yemeni and wider Muslim community. He volunteers with a number of sports and youth organisations to make a difference and teaches Arabic in the local mosque.

Millwall Community Scheme

For over 25 years the Millwall Community Scheme run by Millwall Football Club has been providing opportunities for the local communities of Lewisham and Southwark to take part in sport, learn new skills, make new friends, improve their health and find employment. The scheme delivers high quality coaching and education programmes built on a positive, inclusive and fun approach to sport. The scheme's work has given people of all ages, from all backgrounds and of all abilities the opportunity to take part in sport, building a stronger community.

Zesh Rehman

At the age of 12, Zesh travelled to London to pursue his footballing dreams. Through hard work and determination, Zesh made his way through Fulham's junior, youth and reserve sides before making his debut against Liverpool. From Fulham, Zesh moved to Queens Park Rangers. Meanwhile at international level, Zesh's decision to represent Pakistan rather than England made headlines across the world. When signing for Bradford, Zesh was handed the Club Captaincy and became The Bantams first Asian Captain in its 107 year history.  In 2010, Zesh launched the Zesh Rehman Foundation which supports and delivers grass roots programmes that promote and support the growth of football within Asian communities in the UK and overseas and to promote community cohesion.

Sponsored by Accenture -

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Mosaic Mentor of the Year

To recognise an outstanding volunteer providing mentoring support to students in those schools supported by Mosaic. 

Finalists

Asif Sadiq - Winner

Asif Sadiq is a serving member of the City of London Police force and a stalwart of Mosaic's secondary school mentoring programme who has inspired young men whom many mentors have struggled to engage. Mentoring at a boy's school, he has been instrumental in providing them with motivation, wisdom and consistent support. In addition to his mentoring with Mosaic's secondary schools programme, Asif has been a key mentor in Mosaic's pilot Young Offenders programme, working with disengaged young men within the criminal justice system. He has been positive and patient with all the young men he has been assigned to mentor on a 1-2-1 basis.

Mary Daniels

Mary Daniels is a professional life coach and previous lead mentor at Ellen Wilkinson School for Girls on the Mosaic secondary schools mentoring programme. Mary is also a volunteer mentor with the Mosaic prisons mentoring programme. As well as her support as a mentor, Mary has also provided free consultancy to us for the revamp of our resource pack that informs and structures our mentoring across the country. Mary is a truly energetic and positive motivational speaker and mentor, utilising her profession to deliver great results with the young women and men she encounters.

Dr. Yasmin Naqushbandi

Medical Director/ Consultant Microbiologist (seconded to Department of Health), Yasmin's main priorities are strengthening leadership, improving safety, bedding in a transparent, just culture and ensuring accountability. She has worked in North Middlesex and Queens Hospital. Yasmin began mentoring with Mosaic Futures, Mosaic's primary school programme, from the first year of the pilot. Her support and feedback on Mosaic Futures to date has proved invaluable to the programme. From recruiting mentors, liaising with schools and supporting external visits to university and graduation, Yasmin has proved to be the ideal mentor.

Sajad Hussain

Co-chair of Mosaic Bradford, Sajad Hussain is a Partner with Seafresh Wholesale Distributors with an impressive track record of voluntary activity, who in recent years has made mentoring support in his home town and across Yorkshire a personal mission. Sajad has been involved with Mosaic for over a year, acting as a mentor in the secondary school programme, and has never refused an opportunity to get involved. The school in which Sajad served as the lead mentor reported that the school's most recent GCSE rates significantly exceeded the school's estimates, despite the cohort's challenges in terms of disadvantage and mobility.

Sponsored by Asif Aziz

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