The 2008 Labour Force Survey indicated that the Muslim population permanently resident in the United Kingdom now stands at some 2.4 million. This community is served by perhaps a thousand mosques and is set to grow further in coming decades: around 50% of the community are under twenty-five years old.

The immediate challenge is to develop new ways to express the faith and knowledge of Muslims

Almost all of these mosques employ full-time imams to lead prayers and to preach. Often they direct supplementary schools or other activities, and are called on to provide pastoral care. Although Islam has no equivalent to the Christian clergy, de facto in the British situation, and typically elsewhere, mosques are staffed by full-time religious specialists.

A majority of these imams are trained in the Indian Subcontinent. Yet the majority of UK congregants are now British-born, and may be unresponsive to the language and values of personnel hired overseas. In addition, visiting imams from Middle Eastern countries may not wish to learn English beyond the elementary level which they have already reached. The mosques hence often find themselves poorly equipped to deal with problems of social exclusion, poor communication, criminalisation, and doctrinal radicalism.

In addressing these problems, the Muslim community has important strengths and resources, which in earlier times enabled it to overcome challenges no less great than those we face today. Religious observance is widespread and mosque attendance high. There are many individuals and institutions that preserve fundamental religious learning and the rich heritage of Islamic scholarship.

The immediate challenge, therefore, is to develop new ways to express the faith and knowledge of Muslims in a manner both meaningful and constructive for the community itself, and comprehensible to its friends and neighbours in Britain.

There are already some signs that this is happening. In the past ten years, an increasing number of young British Muslims have enrolled in programmes in the Middle East, particularly in Syria (Madrasat Abi’l-Nur, Damascus University, Al-Fath Institute), Jordan (Qasid Institute), and Yemen (Dar al-Mustafa). Graduates of these institutions are already having a positive impact in the UK. However, it is generally accepted that such institutions do not sufficiently equip graduates for work in the specifically British or Western social context.

There are also several initiatives in the UK, which are seeking to develop curricula relevant to the particular needs and circumstances of the British Muslim community, and their graduates are frequently more adept at cultural mediation than imams trained overseas. Yet until now the impact of these steps has been limited, and there is a serious lack of institutions to address these shortcomings in a systematic way.

One important problem is that many graduates of traditional Muslim institutions find that their qualifications and expertise are not generally recognised in the wider society, which often inhibits their prospects for further education or employment.

Although the maturation of the second-generation is producing a large and possibly growing number of students willing to train for positions of Islamic leadership, this opportunity is in large measure being wasted. To date, there is in the UK no Muslim scholar trained in the traditional disciplines who is a significant and nationally-known asset. The result has often been a sense of confusion and aimlessness in the community.

The establishment of the Cambridge Muslim College represents a significant step towards the development of cultural mediators able to help young people develop and celebrate their identity as British Muslims, positive in their orientation to the ambient society and able to support the da’wa process within and beyond the community. In time, it is hoped that its graduates will act as representatives of Islam to the wider community, in media, inter-religious relations, pastoral and chaplaincy roles, and social administration.

Our graduates will not work only as imams and religious personnel. By providing a wide range of skills, it is hoped that the college will act as a stepping-stone for graduates to go on to higher education, or employment in teaching, journalism, diplomacy, and other career tracks where a deep knowledge of Islam will be beneficial.

The college’s academic approach will be to integrate both traditional Islamic and Western scholarship in a critical and rigorous manner, not to treat them as parallel, separate elements. It will draw on Islam’s long history of conviviality and adaptation in minority situations, and add to it by facilitating the entrenchment of a dynamic, open and engaged Muslim community in Britain.

The College represents a significant step towards the development of cultural mediators able to help young people develop and celebrate their identity as British Muslims

Full-time lecturers and other academic staff will be trained in significant Western institutions, and will have a native or near-native command of English. It is expected that they will join students in establishing a serious and prayerful environment at the college.

The college is non-denominational, and accepts students from every school and tradition within Islam. It is independent of government, and is directed by the Muslim Academic Trust, a registered charity.

The college currently offers a one-year Diploma in Contextual Islamic Studies & Leadership, the first students for which will start in September 2009. This course aims to provide an intensive introduction to a range of contemporary perspectives and disciplines which will complement the students’ existing Islamic education.

In the longer term, the College also intends to offer part-time and distance learning options, three- and four-year degree courses, and a range of non-accredited summer courses and regular study days for employers and the public. It will also be a venue for lectures by distinguished visitors, which will be open to the public and distributed electronically through the College’s website.