Waqf Fund buys retail unit to generate £150,000 a year for humanitarian projects
Howard Lake | 11 September 2026 | News
The Waqf Fund, a subsidiary of Human Appeal, has completed the £1.9 million purchase of a freehold retail unit on Solihull High Street, generating £150,000 in annual rental income earmarked for humanitarian projects.
The pedestrianised High Street unit, close to the Touchwood shopping centre, is let to Danish homeware retailer Søstrene Grene that trades from more than 70 UK stores.
Property portfolio for good
This is the fourth property secured by The Waqf Fund in under two years, taking its UK property portfolio to £5.6 million. Earlier acquisitions include commercial properties in Stockport and Congleton. The fund says all its assets are currently outperforming its target annual return of 7%.
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Donors were able to choose which of thirteen charitable causes their share of the rental income would support, with Orphans, Clean Water and general charity initiatives attracting the strongest response.
How the Waqf model works
The purchase operates under the Islamic charitable framework of waqf, an endowment model in which capital is permanently preserved in income-generating, Shariah-compliant assets such as property. The yield is channelled on an ongoing basis into charitable projects.
Human Appeal, which was established as a UK charity in 1991, draws a comparison with the endowment funds used by Oxford and Cambridge colleges and other grantmaking foundations to fund their work over centuries.
- Islamic Charity (book)
Morshed Alam, General Manager of The Waqf Fund, said:
“The acquisition of our Solihull High Street property is a terrific milestone for The Waqf Fund and our generous donor community. By pooling generous contributions, thousands of everyday donors now jointly own a piece of prime British commercial real estate that will generate £150,000 in sustainable charitable aid for generations to come.”
- Human Appeal launches Islamic endowment fund (8 January 2026)
- Muslim Aid launches Waqf endowment to ‘future-proof’ its work (4 December 2024)
About Howard Lake
Howard Lake is consultant editor of UK Fundraising. He founded the site in 1994 and successfully sold it in 2022. As director of Giving X Ltd he is exploring growing giving on a massive scale.
He is the founder of Fundraising Camp and co-founder of GoodJobs.