URGENT: CEMB is facing closure within 90 days

Originally published on the Council of Ex-Muslims of Britain website on 7 April 2026 and republished here with permission and in solidarity. Please, do what you can to help this vital organisation survive.

We need ‘Life-Line’ supporters to keep our doors open.

Dear Friend,

Right now, there are people in Britain living in fear of being found out by their own families for one simple reason: they no longer believe.

Some are hiding who they are every single day. Some have been threatened, shunned, or forced into silence.

We are often the first place people turn when they realise they cannot live honestly without risk and may lose everything for it.

For nearly nineteen years, the Council of Ex-Muslims of Britain has been there for them.

Today, I need to tell you that we may have to close.

Austerity and the cost-of-living crisis have hit us hard. Donations have fallen just as demand for our support has grown. We can no longer cover our essential costs: our rent, our support groups, our meet-ups and conferences, and our core work.

This is not a distant possibility. It is where we are now.

If nothing changes, CEMB will shut down.

Think about what that loss means:

→  The support groups where people finally speak freely — GONE.

→  The one community many people trust — GONE.

→  The place someone reaches out to support their asylum claim — GONE.

→  Nearly two decades of work — GONE.

We cannot let that happen.

I am asking you to join us in becoming a Monthly Supporter today with a gift of just £2, £3, or £5 a month.

That is less than the cost of a coffee. But if enough of us say yes today, it will keep our doors open.

Our immediate goal is to secure £3,000 in new monthly support:

600 people giving £5/month   or   1,000 people giving £3/month   or   1,500 people giving £2/month

Most supporters choose £5/month to have the greatest impact.

45 supporters are already Life-Line monthly donors, giving £430 a month between them. We need to raise a further £2,570. Please help us close that gap today.

£2 a month keeps our community and resources available to those with nowhere else to go

£3 a month sustains our peer support groups for people in crisis

£5 a month keeps our doors open, our rent paid, and our campaigns alive

THE BEST WAY TO GIVE: MONTHLY STANDING ORDER

The most effective way to support CEMB is by setting up a monthly standing order directly from your bank. Because there are no processing fees, 100% of your donation reaches us.

We say this because we have seen the real cost of payment processing. On a £2 donation via PayPal, we receive just £1.77; the processor takes 23p (11.5%). On a £3 donation, we lose 24p (8%). On a £5 donation, we lose 27p (5.4%).

Over a year of monthly giving, that lost money adds up significantly, money that would otherwise fund our core work.

A standing order has none of these costs. Every penny you give arrives with us in full.

Please set up your monthly gift using these bank details:

Bank: NatWest

Account Name: CEMB

Sort Code: 60-00-01

Account Number: 39330117

Reference: LL-Your-first-name

OTHER WAYS TO GIVE

If a standing order is not possible, you can also give by cheque (payable to CEMB, posted to BM 1919, London WC1N 3XX; please write “Monthly Supporter” on the back).

If easier, you can give via PayPal.

We are grateful for any gift by any method, but a standing order genuinely stretches your support further.

At some point very soon, someone will reach out to CEMB, isolated and taking a serious personal risk. Whether we are there to answer depends on what happens now and on people like you.

Please don’t set this aside. A monthly standing order, started today, is the single most powerful thing you can do to keep this organisation alive.

With sincere thanks,

Maryam Namazie

Spokesperson, Council of Ex-Muslims of Britain

P.S. We are on a 90-day countdown. If we cannot secure £3,000 in monthly support, we will have to close. 45 supporters already give £430 a month between them; we need just £2,570 more. Please be the next to step forward. A monthly standing order ensures every penny of your gift reaches us. It takes just a few minutes to set up. We truly cannot do this without you.