By Harry Shellard
Markfield’s Islamic Foundation Centre remains much of a mystery to many local residents.
Many residents of the village won’t have had much of an insight into what the centre does for the Islamic community within Markfield and Leicestershire.
The centre was established in 2000 after being inaugurated by Prince Charles, with the aims of promoting understanding between Muslim communities in the west and the pluralistic societies they’re a part of.
On top of this, the institute endeavours to “integrate the richness and high standards of traditional Islamic scholarship with the best Western research techniques, academic rigour and critical inquiry.”
The centre has a higher education institute which supports UK and international students, with fees costing around £4,500 for UK students and £7,500 for international students.
The institute offers a number of BA and MA degrees including Islamic Studies, Muslim Chaplaincy and Islamic banking, finance and management.
The institute has other great resources such as its own Islamic library, which is one of the largest in Europe with over 40,000 volumes, books and journals within it. Students are also permitted to use the libraries of both Leicester University and De Montfort University.
Friday sermons are given in the centre’s own mosque by students and scholars with flocks of the community coming to join in with prayer.
The campus also boasts its own sports facilities and gym which is used for football, volleyball and badminton.
There is some on-site accommodation available for male and female students.
Over the years, around 750 students have graduated from the institute, proving it to be successful at further educating the local and international Islamic community.
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