In the years following the partition of Pakistan from India there was little industry and employment in Azad Kashmir. At that time the UK needed labour from Commonwealth countries so I came to Sheffield to find work and a better life. Many people, like myself, came from Azad Kashmir, which is still disputed by Pakistan and India. Kashmir is 90% Muslim and so as families arrived a thriving Kashmiri Muslim community was established in Sheffield.

Many people lived in poor quality housing in Darnall and so in 1986 I was involved in starting Darnall Housing Co-operative. We eventually received a grant from the then Housing Corporation of £2.2 million and with the support of Sheffield City Council and South Yorkshire Housing Association forty families were able to move into high quality housing in Kashmir Gardens in 1990. At first the majority were from Azad Kashmir, but now it is a mixed community of families of Kashmiri, English, Bengali and Somali origin, all living together in a safe and peaceful environment.

Kashmir Gardens, Darnall