Places of belonging

In 1975 Birmingham Central Mosque opened in Highgate, its dome and minaret joining the city skyline — one of the first purpose-built mosques in western Europe and, for the thousands who had prayed for years in converted houses, a monument to permanence: we are here, and we are staying.

It was one landmark among many. Gurdwaras rose in Handsworth and Smethwick — the Guru Nanak Gurdwara there among the largest in Europe — Hindu temples opened in Balsall Heath, and Black-led Pentecostal churches, born when established congregations turned Caribbean worshippers away, filled halls across the city with music and fellowship. Irish Catholic parishes, meanwhile, remained the heart of their own community's life.

These buildings were never only places of worship. They ran language classes and Saturday schools, fed the hungry, advised on immigration papers, celebrated weddings and mourned the dead, and gave young people somewhere to belong. To tell the story of Birmingham's communities without its faith buildings would be to miss the beating heart — which is why their founders, elders, and congregations are central voices in this archive.