I am a 49 year old female Muslim... passionate about my faith, but equally passionate about dispelling the many misconceptions that surround it. My talks aim to inform, educate and inspire through not only the teachings of Islam, but how it's message can empower and motivate all members of humanity to deal with life's challenges. I am also a teacher with over 20 years of experience, enabling me to offer an interactive, relevant presentation, whilst remaining adaptable according to the reaction of the audience in front of me. I am also a published author (I'm not a Celebrity I am a Muslim, Unveiling Arabia and The Voice of Palestine) and enjoy writing poems that express both the vulnerability and strength of humanity.

I have been pursuing public speaking as a paid hobby, but will attend events voluntarily if the organisation requires it. My talks can cover topics ranging from the very basics of Islam to exploring gender equality and how it has been exploited throughout Islamic history.

I have several years of experience presenting specifically on Islam, and more recently on the concept of 'white privilege' and my experience of racism as a British Muslim. I have also talked about being an author, discussing the misconstrued views and politically driven motivations that build on globally misconceived perceptions.

I welcome challenging topics and promise an expression of honesty, sprinkled with a sense of humour! Please see testimonials below.

I hope the above has summarised the purpose of my presentations. Please feel free to make further enquiries if you have any questions.

Sahera Patel

Testimonials:

I just wanted to send a message to say thank you so much for coming in and speaking to Year 10 yesterday. The feedback we had was amazing, and I loved seeing that some of the students were staying back after sessions to talk to you. They told me that your session had made them feel really empowered and believed that it would help with the understanding of Gender Equality within Islam. The staff who were supporting in your session said that the information was invaluable and they found it really interesting and eye-opening. I look forward to inviting you back in to speak to our Year 10’s next year. L Spencer (Thornhill Community Academy, A SHARE Academy, 14/03/23)

Thank you so much for coming to talk to our meeting yesterday! It was really lovely to meet you. You spoke openly and intelligently, sharing with humanity and humour your personal experiences in a way which engaged our whole group. I think we all learned a great deal about the real lives of modern British Muslim women - in many ways so different to the version which appears in the media. I found it particularly interesting that the Prophet Muhammad spoke so many times about the rights of women and women's equality. Truly a most enlightened view at the time! You certainly gave us all much food for thought, which sparked an animated discussion and many positive comments about the evening and you! It was extremely kind of you to leave copies of your books with us. These will be passed around members - quite a few of us have already expressed an interest and are keen to read and learn more. Then we will pass them on to our local library so they are available to our wider community. Thank you very much indeed! (07/03/23 - Copmanthorpe, York, WI)

Sahera Patel is an engaging and inspiring woman. Her honesty and openness to discuss and share her faith and values is refreshing and informative. I was delighted that she led the Women and Islam session for teachers as part of a Craven DEC twilight training course on Understanding Islam and Countering Islamophobia in Sept 2017. (Fiona Protheroe, Craven Development Education Centre)

Last year, Sahera Patel came to talk to the Mothers’ Union in Gomersal. She came without any hesitation and talked to us openly about her Muslim background, her pilgrimage and her family life. She answered the many questions we had and we all completely took to her friendliness and openness. We were so impressed with her presentation that we have booked her again for next year. She is the perfect ambassador for bringing different cultures together. (Trees Fewster, Branch leader, St Mary’s Church, Gomersall)

Sahera was a guest speaker at our church meeting earlier this year. She read us passages from her book and answered knowledgably questions about her faith. We all thoroughly enjoyed having her at our meeting. (Susan Edwards, St Saviour’s Church, Brownhill, Batley)

Sahera Patel is an articulate lady possessed of a wide vocabulary which enabled her to pen her autobiographical work I'M NOT A CELEBRITY, I AM A MUSLIM. I have heard her speaking, as a Muslim, to Jewish audiences in Manchester, where she has been very well received. She explains her faith fluently with humour and with obvious love which also extends to her audiences. They repay her by asking questions which she answers with deep knowledge of her subject. Her intelligence and sincerity are always patently obvious. It is a great pleasure to be present on these occasions. (Lionel Ross. Proprietor and Publisher. i2i Publishing)

Sahera was an inspirational speaker, very calm, knowledgable, approachable and above all passionate about her faith and enabling what Islam means for women in particular. (Judy Rodgers, Community Development worker, Dales Millenium Trust)

Thank you so much for today. The staff and children are ‘buzzing’. You will have seen how our children really would benefit from ‘little and often’ snippets of Islam and what it is to be a Muslim woman, which you brought to life so clearly for them. (Jeannette Peake, Shelley school, Huddersfield. June 2018)