From Alum Rock to community leadership.

I was born and raised in Alum Rock — one of the most diverse, hard-working and proud corners of Birmingham. My earliest memories are of corner shops, family kitchens, school runs, prayers at the mosque, and football in the street. It was loud, warm, and rooted in family.

Mine was a working-class upbringing. We did not have much. What we had was each other — neighbours who looked out for one another, parents who taught the value of honest work, and a community that quietly carried itself.

The schools I attended, the streets I played on, the elders who corrected me when I needed it, and the mosques and faith institutions that shaped my values — all of them are still here. They are the foundation of everything I do.

I saw early on that inequality is not an idea in a textbook. It is the difference between which postcode gets investment and which postcode gets ignored. Between whose children get apprenticeships and whose do not. Between whose voice is heard in the room and whose is not. That awareness, lived rather than learned, has stayed with me.

By day, I built a career in healthcare. By evening and weekend, I worked for my community — through the Alum Rock Community Forum, through founding JABS B8 FC, through years on the radio at Aap Ki Awaaz, and through being present at every doorstep, hustings, hospital fundraiser and youth event I could reach.

My story is not unique. It is the story of countless families in East Birmingham who have built lives of dignity here, often against the odds. If my journey has any meaning beyond my own, it is to show that where you start does not have to limit where you go — and that the responsibility to lift others up never ends.