My father-in-law, Abdul Quddus, who has died aged 80, was for many years a senior education officer at Leeds city council. He and his wife, Parveen, were also social entrepreneurs, setting up secular organisations that focused on enabling all communities to participate fully in the city’s social, cultural and civic life.
During the 1980s and 90s, communities in Leeds originating from south-east Asia still had poor educational and work outcomes, with high unemployment and low-skilled jobs. Abdul worked to address that by securing government funding for and setting up Bangladeshi, Pakistani and other centres in the city, run by members of those communities and helping them access adult education, welfare and housing support. The centres were non-religious, with equal rights and responsibilities for women and young people.
Abdul and Parveen also helped to set up voluntary and community organisations such as the Bengali cultural society Purobi, a women’s empowerment project, Asha, and a Bengali language school for children.
Born in Pabna, Bangladesh, Abdul was the son of Nurul Islam and Halima Nur. After school he gained a BA from the Agriculture College in Dhaka (1964), then a master’s (1968) from Mymensingh Agricultural University (now called Bangladesh Agricultural University).
He married Parveen Akhtar in 1972, and they travelled to Leeds that year. He obtained an MA in economics from Leeds University in 1973, with a focus on rural economics of developing countries.
While working towards a PhD he volunteered at Leeds Citizens Advice Bureau, leading to a job as an education officer at Leeds city council, from 1983, rising to senior education officer. As well as the usual duties he worked on specific projects to support those newly arrived from south-east Asia. In 1988 he created 40 teaching assistant posts for members of those communities so that parents could better support their children in school. He also helped to appoint a number of black and minority ethnic headteachers in Leeds.
Thanks to his work, today many people of Bangladeshi descent living in Leeds are in professional jobs, in academia or successful entrepreneurs. Abdul also ensured more individuals from Bame communities gained the relevant qualifications to take up youth worker and education jobs in the council.
After retiring in 1999, he undertook consultancy work on mentoring projects for disadvantaged young people. This was funded through the EU, and he travelled to a number of European countries, including Hungary, Greece and Norway.
A humanist, Abdul loved Bengali classical music and poetry, and the writings of Rabindranath Tagore. He and Parveen would appear in Bengali plays through the Purobi cultural society.
A role model for young people, Abdul would cite the words of Barack Obama “Don’t wait for good things to happen to you. If you go out and make some good things happen, you will fill the world with hope, you will fill yourself with hope.”
Abdul is survived by Parveen, their daughter, Archi, and grandson, Sobitha.
