All Hallows Church in Bow is located in one of the most disadvantaged areas of the country where:

 

• More than half of local children live below the poverty line and many families are dependent upon food banks

• The majority of social housing tenants are benefit dependant and in rent arrears

• There are very high levels of crime and anti-social behaviour, much of which is gang-related, and the gangs are drawn along racial lines

• Ill-health, obesity, drug and drink abuse are all endemic.

 

The majority of the local population are of Bengali or other Muslim backgrounds, so All Hallows has run numerous projects over the years to encourage people of different backgrounds to have fun, build relationships based on what they have in common, and overcome what might pull them apart.

 

In 2012, the church ran a community café with a widescreen television so that people could watch the Olympics together, and the success of that initiative eventually led to the development of AHABA, which is an Arabic word for love incorporating the initials of All Hallows, Bow. The project will bring together projects for families, teenagers seeking to avoid the gang culture and people suffering addictions under one roof; it will also provide a base for social events and will be self-sustaining through a non-profit making café that offers work experience to ex-offenders.

 

It has been developed over several years with the active and enthusiastic support of the local Muslim community and is a genuinely multi-cultural project, even though it is being built alongside the church.