“It is like second nature”: informal giving among Pakistani Muslims in an English city

Abstract

This article explores how the Islamic principles underpinning zakat and sadaqah aid the development of localised informal support networks in an English city. The article draws on interviews conducted with Pakistani Muslim men and women living in areas of high deprivation. Participants self-identified as a ‘community’ that was multigenerational yet built largely on traditional and conventional Muslim practices. Presenting empirical data that demonstrate the existence of Muslim philanthropic activity, participants provide their own interpretations of zakat and sadaqah while making a distinction between ‘charity’ and more general ‘good deeds’. The findings address a gap in knowledge surrounding the role that informal support plays in supporting Pakistani Muslims in Britain who possess a lower socioeconomic status. The data reveal that the motivations surrounding engagement in informal support have consequences for (dis)engagement with some formal welfare support services.