Topics: Main Topic: Other, Jewish Community, Jewish Organisations, Strategic Planning, Policy, Demography, Haredi / Strictly Orthodox Jews, Care and Welfare, Health, Children, Youth, Poverty, Housing, Elderly Care, Age and Generational Issues
Abstract: At 28,075 Jewish people, Greater Manchester recorded the largest Jewish population in the UK
outside of London and adjacent Hertfordshire. At first sight, it appears to have grown by 12%
between 2011 and 2021, most likely driven largely by high birth-rates among the strictly Orthodox
community. Similarly, if the data eventually proves to be accurate, this constitutes a growth of 29%
over the twenty years between 2001 and 2021. Provisional estimates of the Haredi community
based on other data sources (such as Manchester Connections) suggest that the Haredi community
could be as large as 22,778 but, again, further analysis is needed before any firm conclusions can be
drawn. Whatever the final numbers, it is clear that Greater Manchester, which includes the largest
Eruv in the UK with a perimeter of more than 13 miles, covering parts of Prestwich, Crumpsall and
Higher Broughton, is an important and growing centre of Jewish life.
This report was commissioned by Jewish Representative Council of Greater Manchester & Regions
(GMJRC) to research and analyse community strengths and provide a mapping of Jewish
organisations in the Greater Manchester area. It was overseen by the GMJRC strategic group – a
group that was formed of Councils and organisations across the Jewish religious spectrum as a
response to the pandemic. It reviews services in seven themes: Children & Young People; Adult
Services; Older People; Health; Employment; Emergency Response; and Housing. As well as looking
at delivery, governance, leadership, and building assets, it also tries to understand where the gaps
and support needs are. As the demographics and relative sizes of the mainstream and strictly
Orthodox Jewish populations continue to change, this study represents an important examination
of both the challenges and opportunities of how the respective communities work together. As
these populations change across the UK, and beyond, the study will have significance to other cities
where these Jewish communities exist side by side.
The Institute of Jewish Policy Research (JPR) used a variety of data sources to identify organisations
delivering in each theme and built maps of that data which can be seen throughout this report.
Mobilise Public Ltd use several methods to gather data from these organisations in each theme.
The main approach was qualitative, using stakeholder interviews and focus group discussions with a
purposely selected sample of these organisations, and the evidence collected was supplemented
with a short survey which was issued to a larger number of organisations. The research was
coproduced with a subset of the strategic group through a series of facilitated sessions and was
designed to build a good understanding of delivery in each theme as well as an understanding of
challenges and opportunities in readiness for the strategic group to develop a more integrated
strategy for the Greater Manchester Jewish community
Abstract: Since 2014, JPR's European Jewish Research Archive (EJRA) has consolidated social research on post-1990 European Jewish populations within one single, freely available, online resource. EJRA is designed to be a service to community leaders, policymakers and researchers, as well as a resource to help inform the European Jewish research agenda going forward.
Drawing on an innovative methodology, this report presents a detailed statistical analysis of EJRA's holdings. Through this analysis, we are able to pinpoint specific strengths and weaknesses in social research coverage of particular issues in particular countries.
The report finds a clear increase in the research coverage of European Jewish populations since 1990. The amount of coverage in each country is broadly in line with the size of each country’s Jewish population. The majority of the research is produced by researchers whose work is not confined to this field, with a small ‘core' of committed Jewishly-focused researchers. Academia provides the primary base for researchers, but there has been a significant increase in recent years in research reports produced by non-academic institutions, particularly those concerned with monitoring antisemitism.
Approximately 20% of EJRA items concern antisemitism and this proportion has more than trebled since 1990. Research on ‘living’ Jewish communities - as opposed to research on antisemitism and Holocaust remembrance - is far less developed in countries with small Jewish populations. At 8% of the collection, Jewish education appears to be underdeveloped in all European countries with the exception of the UK.
Drawing on the research findings, the report goes on to raise questions regarding possible strategic priorities for European Jewish research for discussion by researchers and organisations that sponsor research. In particular, we ask how and whether research across Europe could be better coordinated and what countries and topics require further support to develop a stronger research infrastructure.
Abstract: Following the unprecedented number of antisemitic incidents in the summer
of 20141, the Scottish Government funded the Scottish Council of Jewish
Communities (SCoJeC) to carry out a small-scale inquiry into ‘What’s changed
about being Jewish in Scotland’ since our 2012 inquiry into the experience of
‘Being Jewish in Scotland’.
Our principal findings were:
- 38 respondents to our survey (32%) explicitly talked about a
heightened level of anxiety, discomfort, or vulnerability, despite not
having been directly asked.
- 20 respondents (17%) – many more than in 2012 – told us that they
now keep their Jewish identity secret.
- As a result there is less opportunity for Jewish people to develop
resilient and supportive networks and communities.
- 76% of respondents said that events in the Middle East have a
significant impact on the way they are treated as Jews in Scotland.
- 80% of respondents said that the events in the Middle East during
summer 2014 had negatively affected their experience of being
Jewish in Scotland.
- 21 respondents (18%) mentioned the raising of Palestinian flags
by some Local Authorities as having contributed to their general
sense of unease.
- 16 respondents (13%) told us that they no longer have confidence in
the impartiality of public authorities, including the police.
- Several respondents said that, for the first time, they were
considering leaving Scotland.
- Antisemitism in social media was a much greater concern than in
our 2012 inquiry.
- 12 respondents (11%) told us they found it difficult to find anything
good to say about being Jewish in Scotland.
Commenting on the preliminary findings of our inquiry into What’s Changed About
Being Jewish in Scotland, Neil Hastie, head of the Scottish Government Community
Safety Unit, said: “The emerging themes from this report are particularly valuable;
as is the data on how the international context can impact very palpably on the
experience of being Jewish in Scotland. There is much in this for us (and Ministers)
to consider.”
We are disturbed by the extent to which this inquiry shows that Jewish people’s
experience in Scotland has deteriorated as a result of the wider community’s
attitudes towards events in the Middle East. But despite the negativity and level
of discomfort expressed by many respondents, and the fact that some are, for
the first time, wondering whether they should leave Scotland, the vast majority of
Scottish Jews are here to stay, and we therefore welcome the Scottish Government’s
willingness to listen to the concerns of Jewish people in Scotland to ensure their
safety and well-being
Abstract: Mandated by the Leeds Jewish Representative Council (LJRC), a group of community lay
leaders and professionals, representing a wide cross section of the community (including
ages, gender, organisations and affiliations) undertook the challenge of producing a
strategic assessment of the Leeds Jewish community.
This exercise of analysis, needs assessment and planning is vital for Jewish communities that
want to thrive and grow in the complex times we live in, that in many cases make obsolete
many of the certainties of the past.
This cross-section group, which started its work with a year of training in community
development issues, could develop a comprehensive view (a sort of 'bird's eye view') of the
whole community beyond organisational boundaries. After this initial stage, the group
evolved into the Leeds Strategic Planning group (SPG), which, with the support of UJIA and
Leatid, undertook this strategic analysis.
The aim was to understand the current trends in the community, the needs of its different
populations and to envision different scenarios in the evolution of the community in the next
few years. This would constitute the basis for offering a set of strategic directions for the
community as a whole.
A strategic planning process requires many qualities from a Jewish Community. Not every
community is ready to undertake the challenge that a planning process demands. One
needs to have a solid basis to build on, a committed, positive leadership and the openmindedness
that comes from strong convictions and solid values. The community needs to
have the daring and the intellectual honesty to look at itself without preconceived ideas
and with the desire to improve and grow. The fact that the Leeds Jewish Community
undertook this task is further proof of its solidity and dynamism.
Abstract: This short term study into people’s experiences of being Jewish in Scotland has been
carried out by the Scottish Council of Jewish Communities (SCoJeC) and funded by the
Community Safety Unit of the Scottish Government. The inquiry was a direct response to
the large increase in the number of antisemitic incidents in Scotland in the third quarter of
2014. This increase came as an unwelcome shock, not only to the Jewish Community, but
to civil society at large. The terrorist incidents in Paris and in Copenhagen that deliberately
targeted Jewish people occurred during the course of the inquiry, and these also affected
people’s feelings about being Jewish in Scotland.
This new study has enabled us to go back to many of the people who contributed to our
2012 Being Jewish in Scotland inquiry to ask whether, and if so, how and why, their
experiences and opinions have changed. It has also reached a significant number of
additional participants around Scotland.
We have gathered data through a combination of online and paper surveys, focus groups,
and informal discussions at events in locations throughout Scotland. We know from our
experience of running the initial inquiry, that when we hold events to discuss the
experience of being Jewish, especially outside the larger Jewish communities in the central
belt, these events and activities themselves serve to provide support and reassurance, and
build a sense of community and engagement.
We are currently preparing a detailed report of responses to the inquiry, and a special
edition of our quarterly newsletter Four Corners will be published around the end of April.
The present report outlines the methodology, summarises the main themes that are
emerging, and gives a flavour of the findings of the inquiry.
Abstract: Being Jewish in Scotland was a small-scale inquiry carried out by the Scottish Council
of Jewish Communities (SCoJeC), with funding from the Scottish Government, to
find out more about the variety of experience of Jewish people in Scotland, and
encourage them to identify the issues that are important to them. It has helped
SCoJeC to build a better understanding of what affects the sense of security of
Jewish individuals and communities, and thus to establish what matters to the
community, and improve our support for Jewish people in Scotland. The process
of carrying out the inquiry has itself had the result of strengthening networks
and social capital in the community, and has helped to provide support to Jewish
people throughout Scotland.
It is intended that the findings should also prove useful in assisting statutory
and voluntary organisations and agencies such as the Scottish Government,
the NHS, local authorities, education authorities, employers, faith groups, and
others to support and respond more effectively to the needs and concerns of the
community.
More than 300 Jewish people, from Shetland to the Borders, participated in Being
Jewish in Scotland, either by attending one of the 30 focus groups and events
held as part of the project, or by completing a survey or participating in a oneto-one
interview
Topics: Jewish Future, Strategic Planning, Globalisation, Israel-Diaspora Relations, Diaspora, Antisemitism, Main Topic: Other, Demography, Jewish Identity, Jewish Community, Jewish Status, Jewish Education, Religious Observance and Practice
