By Alice Wright

The Muslim prayer rooms in the Portland building at De Montfort University have re-opened after undergoing two months of refurbishments.

The two prayer rooms have been fitted with an induction loop system to assist hearing and have been made more wheelchair-accessible, while also increasing the capacity to about 400 due to high demand.

Imam Mohammed Laher said: “We get approximately 1,000 students and staff, the prayer rooms were too small and there were a lot of students who wouldn’t come because they said whenever we come it’s always full, hence the expansion.

“If it wasn’t for the prayer room the students would be reading in lecture rooms, classrooms, corridors, libraries, so having a dedicated space makes it so much easier.”

The Imam provides religious and spiritual support for students and staff, but general wellbeing and guidance is also provided during the day on a one-to-one or group basis.

The Prayer rooms are open for both students and staff on Mondays to Fridays from 8am until 9pm during term time. The prayer room entrance can be found at the rear entrance of Portland building, through the car park.

Prayers take place four times a day and the times for December can be found here https://www.dmu.ac.uk/Documents/current-students/student-support/spiritual-support/prayer-rooms/2022-December.pdf