Find out how we aim to change lives through our work

Our Work

Cohesion is the life-giving force that enables a group of people to function as a community. Without communities, there is no society, and no civilisation.

There is a visible increase in atrocities committed by one group or another. The recent attacks in London and Manchester are deliberate and aimed only to divide people, and create a sense of fear, and anarchy. Within all communities there are good and bad but unfortunately, we only seem to hear about the negative, the silent majority stay silent but in their own way they are the loudest not through their voices but through their actions.

We all want to live in a community where we feel safe, to know that there will be people there to help us when we need it and where we are all proud to tell people that this is where we live. We can create this community and truly create community cohesion by our deeds rather than just talking about it.

Who we work with, Our Supporters & Testimonials

Community Cohesion Dinner

A proud moment bringing the whole community together on one platform

The Iftar dinner event was attended by 650+ guests from the length and breadth of the Manchester community. It was organised with the active participation and information stalls from the Greater Manchester Police along with their senior officers, the British Army led by their senior officer, the UK Fire and Rescue Service, GME Scouts, the British Red Cross, St John Ambulance, Centrepoint, GHC, Consul General of Pakistan, MPs, Councillors, singers, sports personalities, comedians, and representatives from other organisations.

This event was aimed to bring people together and start to promote the changes we can all make, and create the partnerships needed to make a difference to the young people of United Kingdom. The event received very positive feedbacks from the wider community.

Community Cohesion Mela

To carry the torch our community cohesion and youth empowerment drive, we have organised four melas; in Manchester, Birmingham, Middlesbrough, and Luton in August and September 2017. Beyond all our expectations, the average turnout for the events was 125,000 to 150,000 people, mostly youngsters. We used these events to hammer home the messages of standing united as a community, how to fight hate crime and Islamophobia, how to have a positive outlook in our lives, rather than bickering over colour, religion and differences. An array of celebrities supported the events, including Hunterz and Imran Khan, among others.

Preventing Hate Crimes & Acid Attacks

According to Home Office statistics, there were 80,393 hate crimes offences in England and Wales in 2016-17, compared with 62,518 in 2015-16, an increase by 29%, the largest since the Home Office began recording figures in 2011-12.

This year has seen an alarming rise in the number of acid attacks taking place in the UK and in London particularly. The number of cases more than doubled from less than 200 in 2014 to 431 in 2016, with Scotland Yard focusing on specific parts of the city. Newham, in East London, had three times more acid attacks than the next highest borough, with almost 400 of London's 1,500 reports over the last five years happening there. Home Secretary Amber Rudd has announced plans to ban the sale of corrosive substances to those under 18.

There were notable spikes in hate crime around the time of the EU referendum, and after the Westminster Bridge, Manchester Arena and London Bridge attacks this year.

The usual responses are statement from public officials denouncing the crime and the beliefs that inspired it, and law officers enforcing the law to tackle the crime and protect the vulnerable. If these measures are effective, then the question arises; why hate crimes are on the increase? The only sustainable solution to prevent hatred overcoming people, for whatever reason mentioned before, is to educate them.

Smile Aid hosted event called ‘Hate Crime and Acid Attacks in the UK’, on Wednesday 25 October 2017, at the Houses of Parliament. It was a ground breaking presentation event, the first of its kind, focusing on the topic: Hate Crime and Acid Attacks in the UK. We are very honoured to be chosen to host this event. It was a great initiative to bring twenty members of parliament, councillors, faith leaders, the army, the police, acid attack victims, medical professionals, and community members to the discussion table.

From the collective opinions we heard in the event, we deduce that to tackle the four categories of hate crimes (thrill-seeking, defensive, retaliatory, and mission offending) effectively we need a different approach; we need to empower the youth and bring about community cohesion. This is precisely where Smile Aid fits in, with years of experience working with the vulnerable, the underprivileged, and the youth at grassroot level. We were confident that good things would come from our joint efforts. After the discussions in the event, MPs agreeing to bring the issue before the parliament’s next session shows how sensitive the issues is, and is considered a very positive output of the event.

Tackling Homelessness

Homelessness is not a personal problem anymore; it’s a national crisis. It’s a disgrace and an outrage; it’s appalling to see thousands sleep on the streets, even in a developed country like the UK, and the number grows every year. It has been observed that the housing crisis isn't just about houses, it's about people. Reports say that homeless people die before they reach 50.

There is no single reason why people become homeless; it could be relationship breakdown, job loss, mental health, and alcohol and drug related. More worryingly, there is a considerable increase in rough sleeping among the young people below the age of 25 years. They also face very dangerous and humiliating situations often.

We, at Smile Aid, believe everyone deserves the right to have enough to eat, possess a warm home, to feel safe, to feel respected, and to have positive opportunity for their future. SmileAid is committed to eradicate homelessness by providing the rough sleeping community with emergency care, food, warm clothing, medical aid, housing, moral support and the necessary education and training to make them self-sufficient.

Smile Aid participated in the campaign #WeStandTogether for a more peaceful Greater Manchester. The aim was to give every child the chance to learn about peace and how to solve problems without violence, to fight against hate crime and to celebrate kindness.

We are working on this campaign with the Manchester Evening News, Tim Parry Johnathan Ball Peace Foundation, Greater Manchester Police and some of the families of those who died in the Arena.

#WeStandTogether

Life Saving First Aid Training

We provide First Aid training to children and adults in the UK, in collaboration with the British Army and other orgonisations. We advertise the event and use our managed facilities, or use venues associated with other events to impart the training by our trained professionals.

We focus on all from school children, youngsters and adults, giving them the knowledge and confidence to act if someone suffers a sudden illness or injury, such as performing CPR, prior to professional medical help being available.

Easter Treat Distribution at Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital

Easter treats were given to children staying at Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital during Easter 2016, in collaboration with Greater Manchester Police and Members of the European Parliament.

It is unfortunate to see many children spending their Easter holidays in hospital beds. Smile Aid is proud of playing its part, in providing the children staying in the hospital with chocolate treats, thereby bringing a smile on their face and making the day a special one.

We look forward to working with Royal Manchester Hospital and its Charity with providing further support to the patients admitted in the hospital.

Pictured with the Easter Eggs delivered to Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital (from the left to right) Umar Khan (Chief of Police),

Mohammed Abu Bakar Sarwar – Bax (Smile Aid)

Afzal Khan (Member European Parliament),

Sam Uttley (Central Manchester Universality Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, Shahbaz Sarwar (Smile Aid) and at the front Master Jalaluddin Sarwar (Smile Aid)

Empowering our Next Generation

Smile Aid recognises the children of our community by paying special attention to them. We have organised baking sessions for children in various schools, where they get the opportunity to learn culinary skills. Moreover, the children are given a lead to distribute the food, they helped make, to the homeless people. These activities instil them with the values of love, respect, and care at a very younger age, and they grow up with these values. Also, we accommodate children to all our events, and we have a special section for their entertainment, including bouncy castles, face painting, healthy snack parlours, and other forms of amusement. We visit and give seasonal gifts to the young ones admitted in children’s hospital to encourage them.

British Army Fun Day

It’s a first of its kind partnership with the British Army personnel and veterans. A fun day organized collectively for fostered children.

Youth Empowerment through Sports

We believe in promoting positive values in our youth, who are going to be tomorrow’s future.

Our youth workers role-play and engage with the young people of the society to instil the core values of respect, inclusiveness, equality, empowerment, valuing difference, education, and participation.

We foster hidden talents by conducting free music lessons to the youngsters, and offer martial arts, football training etc. to the youngsters, to keep their body fit and mind focussed. We have conducted body building competition, in collaboration with the Body Building Federation, with mainly young people in mind.

Bring a smile

Acting quickly is essential if you seen an acid attack.

Be proud to change the circumstances of a suffering soul for the better. Please support us generously to bring a smile on the face of the less privileged. With your generosity we would be able to make SmileAid a peoples’ movement.

“Remember that the happiest people are not those getting more, but those giving more.” - H. Jackson Brown, Jr.

Other Services

Sports Training for Kids
Workshops for Children
Counselling Sessions
Homeless Support
Marriage Counselling
Supporting & Guiding our Young

At Smile Aid, we have a host of projects for the benefit and betterment of our community. Our aim is to offer a helping hand to the disadvantaged section of the society, giving them an opportunity to mingle and to share their experience, as well as to give an expression to their hidden talents.

Sports Training for all

We focus on children, at the grassroot level, offering them football training. We arrange the venue and provide them with kits and refreshments.

Our professional coaches would give them valuable training tips. This enables the children to keep their minds focussed and body fit, thus preventing these budding teenagers from falling prey to negative influences.

Workshops for Children & Adults

Our team of dedicate volunteers, with the help of professionals, offer regular workshops for children. The subjects range from:

how to realise one’s dreams

Healthy eating

Make the best of time

BIG NO to drugs

Unity in diversity

Counselling Sessions

In our efforts to provide help and support to the needy in the society, we have encountered many cases where people have real issues with no immediate support handy. This prompted us to add a counselling portfolio to our list of services. We welcome people to talk freely to our trained counsellor, of any issues they have. The counsellor analyses the person, and directs to the appropriate source of help. Anything related to education is handled by Mr Ebenezer, Lecturer at Manchester School of Business. Crime related support is given by Mr Umer Khan, Chief Inspector, GMP. We help them seek medical help if needed.

Homeless Support

Along with the essential support given to the homeless people by us, in the form of food and warm clothing, we have extended our activity by offering them Training & Career Advice. We are in the process of creating a database of the homeless. We invite them to our office, make a CV for them and offer career advice. We liaise with like-minded charities to find them jobs.

Talk it over Tea

We offer open get-together evenings for the members of the community to have some refreshments and discuss any issues they are concerned with or just a chit-chat. This is found to be very highly successful as people can talk freely without any fear, gives an opportunity to know more about the community and their issues, and platform for varied religious and ethnic section to mingle without any inhibitions and feel that oneness.

Marriage Counselling

We have seen many couples who are almost on the verge of separation, mainly due to ego clashes and/or frivolous issues. Our counsellors, talk to them, identify the root cause of the issue, give them essential counselling and advice, and let them talk freely to each other without any prejudices and talk it out. This helped save many marriages. We also give counselling to engaged couples and newlyweds.