Shaykh Haytham Tamim, the founder and main teacher of the Utrujj Foundation defines himself as a knowledge seeker. Praise be to Allah, his Foundation was the pioneer in disseminating Islamic knowledge in the UK over 20 years ago.

His extensive expertise spans over 30 years across the main Islamic jurisprudence schools of thought and different Islamic denominations through highly advanced classical and religious texts.

With 29 links in his chain, Shaykh Haytham’s unbroken chain of scholarship goes back the Prophet (peace be on him), and gave him the opportunity to study with some of the foremost scholars in their expertise. He holds some of the highest Ijazahs (certificates) in Quran, Hadith (the Prophetic traditions) and Fiqh (Islamic rulings).

His respected teachers include the late Professor Wahba Al-Zuhayli, the late Shaykh Muhammad Sukkar, the late Shaykh Khalil Al-Mays, Professor Ahmad Al-Haji Kurdi, the late Shaykh Abdul Razzaq Al-Halabi, the late Shaykh Adeeb Al-Kallas, the late Mulla Abdul ‘Aleem Al-Zanki and Professor Mustafa Azami, Mufti Taqi Usmani, Shaykh Nizam Yaqoubi.

His own gift for teaching was evident when he gave his first sermon to a large audience at the age of 17, after which he studied in Damascus and returned to serve as a senior lecturer of Islamic Transactions and Comparative Jurisprudence at the Islamic University of Beirut (Shariah College).

Prior to coming to the UK, he established an office for the research and publication of important manuscripts and published three books on Comparative Jurisprudence (Fiqh). He also worked in Lebanese Shariah courts as a trainee judge.

In 2000, Shaykh Haytham moved to the UK, where he founded Utrujj to spread the message of Islam with an emphasis on clarity, authenticity and practicality.

Due to his wide breadth of experience, he is a scholar and advisor on Islamic Finance and Shariah for international organisations ranging from investment firms to legal and accountancy firms. In addition, he has 20 years of experience advising British lawyers, as well as charities such as Save the Children and UNICEF.

He is the Director of Shariah Solutions Limited, consultancy firm in Islamic Finance and also a member of several advisory roles on Shariah boards, and has assisted multiple institutions launch Islamic compliant products to serve the Muslim consumers of Europe and the Middle East.

Shaykh Haytham Tamim is leader of the Lebanese Sunni community in the UK under Dar Al-Fatwa in the UK and an authorised Faqih with knowledge of the Shariah.

He takes a keen interest in promoting love and tolerance within the Muslim community as well within wider society, and voicing the need for social justice.

Often consulted by his students for his wise, compassionate and balanced stance, he loves spreading knowledge of the Quran and Sunnah in a way that is authentic, relevant and down to earth.