Raja Miah

For the Pakistani politician known by the same name, see Masihuddin Ahmad.

Raja Miah MBE (born May 1973)[1] is a British charity worker, activist, and political figure. He has received both praise and criticism for his activities.

Raja Miah
MBE
BornMay 1973 (1973-05) (age 52)
Oldham, England
OccupationCharity worker
Political partyIndependent (since 2024)
Other political
affiliations		Labour Party (until 2019)
Failsworth Independent Party (2021)
Proud of Oldham and Saddleworth (2021)
Children1
Websitehttps://www.rajamiah.com/

Early life and career

Miah was born and raised in Oldham. His parents were Bangladeshi Muslims who had emigrated from Sylhet.[2]

Charity work

In 1997, Miah co-founded Peacemaker, a charity aimed at promoting community cohesion.[3] The charity received commendation from the Home Office for its efforts following the 2001 Oldham riots.[3][4][5]

In the 2004 New Year Honours, Miah was appointed a Member of the Order of the British Empire for his contributions to charity work.[6]

He advised the Home Office and Greater Manchester Police on counterterrorism during this time.[7]

In 2011, Peacemaker closed due to financial difficulties linked to the austerity measures.[3]

Free schools

In 2012, Miah announced plans to establish a free school to enhance local education.[8] He opened two free schools in Greater Manchester: Collective Spirit in 2013 and Manchester Creative School in 2014.[9] Miah served as chief executive officer of the academy trust overseeing both institutions.[10] The development of Collective Spirit encountered opposition from local councillors.[11]

In 2016, The Guardian reported that a firm owned by Miah had received £700,000 from the academy trust.[12] Collective Spirit was placed in special measures by Ofsted after an inspection rated it 'inadequate' in all categories.[13]

By 2018, both schools were closed by the Department for Education amid concerns over educational standards, safety, and financial debts.[9][14] The exam board OCR accused one of the schools of malpractice.[15]

In 2019, local MP Jim McMahon called for an investigation into the issues surrounding the schools.[16] That year, the Education and Skills Funding Agency found that the trust's chairman, Alun Morgan, had violated regulations and raised questions about his connections to Miah.[17]

Miah lodged a complaint with the Independent Press Standards Organisation regarding three articles in the Manchester Evening News, which was not upheld.[18]

Activism and politics

Campaign against grooming gangs

In late 2019, Miah began alleging corruption within Oldham Council and claimed that local Labour Party politicians had covered up grooming gangs in the area.[19] He specifically accused former council leader and MP Jim McMahon, Chief Executive Carolyn Wilkins, Deputy Leader Arooj Shah, and Council Leader Sean Fielding of involvement in such cover-ups.[19][20] McMahon described these allegations as defamatory.[13]

Miah established three online blogs to publish articles and podcasts, where he discussed alleged cover-ups of grooming gangs and local government corruption. He claimed that Labour politicians had fostered division by relying on a 'cartel-controlled block Asian vote'. Some sources have described Miah as an opportunist who has sought support from far-right groups.[21]

In 2021, Miah was associated with the Failsworth Independent Party and Proud of Oldham and Saddleworth.[19][22][23] During the 2021 Oldham Metropolitan Borough Council elections, Labour council leader Sean Fielding lost his seat to Conservative candidate Mark Wilkinson by a margin of 191 votes. The Times reported that Miah had disseminated false information on Facebook about Asian cartels intimidating voters at polling stations, as part of wider social media activity involving far-right elements.[24][25]

In June 2022, Jim McMahon accused Miah in Parliament of promoting conspiracy theories for financial and political benefit. McMahon also noted that Miah had overseen serious safeguarding failures at the Collective Spirit free school.[26]

In July 2021, Miah was arrested by Greater Manchester Police and charged with malicious communications and harassment.[27] He had appeared in the magistrates' court twelve times by February 2024. In May 2024, a judge dismissed the harassment charge after prosecutors offered no evidence.[28]

During the 2024 United Kingdom general election, Miah stood as an independent candidate in Oldham West, Chadderton and Royton, receiving 6.4% of the vote and placing fifth.[29]

In January 2025, Elon Musk advocated for an inquiry into grooming gangs in Oldham, citing posts shared from Miah on X (Twitter).[30]

In December 2025, the Mayor of Greater Manchester addressed misinformation posted by Miah on Twitter, stating that Miah "regularly makes misleading allegations".[31]

Personal life

Miah has a daughter.[32]

See also

References

  1. ^ "Raja MIAH personal appointments - Find and update company information - GOV.UK". find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk. Retrieved 2026-02-17.
  2. ^ "An Evening with Rajah Miah | Free Speech Backlash". www.freespeechbacklash.com. Retrieved 2026-02-17.
  3. ^ a b c Administrator, men (2013-01-11). "How Peacemaker paid the price of the war on terror". Manchester Evening News. Retrieved 2026-02-17.
  4. ^ Doward, Jamie; McKenna, Helen (2007-04-01). "'Give young pupils lessons in equality'". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2026-02-17.
  5. ^ James, Adam (2003-07-09). "Peace of mind". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2026-02-17.
  6. ^ "'Inadequate' school to seek new sponsor". www.oldham-chronicle.co.uk. Retrieved 2026-02-17.
  7. ^ "Raja Miah, UK Grooming Gangs Activist and Extremism Expert". Apple Podcasts. Retrieved 2026-02-21.
  8. ^ Miah, Raja (2012-07-16). "Free schools won't promote division – they can help end it". www.thetimes.com. Retrieved 2026-02-17.
  9. ^ a b Williams, Jennifer (2018-01-31). "The schools that blew £10million - and had to shut down because they were so bad". Daily Mirror. Retrieved 2026-02-17.
  10. ^ "£383k paid for school services". www.oldham-chronicle.co.uk. Retrieved 2026-02-17.
  11. ^ "Free school in site storm". www.oldham-chronicle.co.uk. Retrieved 2026-02-17.
  12. ^ Mansell, Warwick (2016-08-16). "Academy trust paid out £700,000 to firm owned by chief executive". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2026-02-17.
  13. ^ a b "McMahon: I will not be intimidated". www.oldham-chronicle.co.uk. Retrieved 2026-02-17.
  14. ^ "Oldham: Site of infamous 'anarchy' school up for sale". BBC News. 2024-09-18. Retrieved 2026-02-17.
  15. ^ "A shocking catalogue of failure at the hi-tech schools that were £1m in debt". Manchester Evening News. 2018-03-15. Retrieved 2026-02-17.
  16. ^ "War of words between Oldham MP and former CEO of failed free school". The Oldham Times. 2019-11-01. Retrieved 2026-02-17.
  17. ^ "Free school's former chairman broke law over payments of £500K". The Oldham Times. 2019-05-10. Retrieved 2026-02-17.
  18. ^ "02352-18 Miah v Manchester Evening News". IPSO. Retrieved 2026-02-17.
  19. ^ a b c Herrmann, Joshi (2021-07-04). "Grooming gangs, cartels and the poisoning of Oldham's politics". The Mill. Retrieved 2026-02-17.
  20. ^ "Britain's 'grooming gangs' under renewed scrutiny and investigations". 2025-02-08. Retrieved 2026-02-18.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link)
  21. ^ Jeffery, Max (2026-01-14). "Criminal candidates, grooming gangs and petrol bombings – welcome to Oldham". The Spectator. Retrieved 2026-02-17.
  22. ^ "Disgraced activist splits from political party it is claimed he founded". Neil Wilby Media. 2021-10-25. Retrieved 2026-02-18.
  23. ^ "Disgraced hyper-local party mired in yet more controversy". Neil Wilby Media. 2021-09-15. Retrieved 2026-02-18.
  24. ^ Al-Othman, Hannah (2021-05-15). "Did a vicious Facebook fake news campaign finish off a council leader?". www.thetimes.com. Retrieved 2026-02-18.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link)
  25. ^ "Former council leader speaks out over campaign allegedly accusing him of covering up grooming gangs". The Oldham Times. 2021-07-06. Retrieved 2026-02-18.
  26. ^ O'Donoghue, Dan (2022-06-30). "Former charity boss accused in Parliament of 'spreading hate and racism'". Manchester Evening News. Retrieved 2026-02-17.
  27. ^ "Trial of 'activist' accused of harassment is postponed". The Oldham Times. 2022-08-18. Retrieved 2026-02-18.
  28. ^ Scheerhout, John (2024-05-02). "Judge dismisses case against Raja Miah as accuser is 'scattering mum's ashes'". Manchester Evening News. Retrieved 2026-02-18.
  29. ^ "Election result for Oldham West, Chadderton and Royton (Constituency) - MPs and Lords - UK Parliament". members.parliament.uk. Retrieved 2026-02-17.
  30. ^ Herrmann, Joshi (2025-01-13). "Elon Musk thinks there is a hidden grooming scandal in Oldham. Why can't the police find it?". The Mill. Retrieved 2026-02-18.
  31. ^ "Mayor of Greater Manchester". X. 2025-12-30.
  32. ^ "Raja Miah, UK Grooming Gangs Activist and Extremism Expert". Apple Podcasts. Retrieved 2026-02-21.
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