Refurbishment

The history of the Jews in Norwich is a unique and enduring story stretching back to the earliest period of Jewish settlement in England in the 11th century. Norwich has the dubious notoriety as the city of the original Blood Libel of 1144, which was the beginning of worldwide antisemitism. Following the expulsion from England in 1290, Jewish resettlement in the 17th century primarily took place in London. However, Jews returned to Norwich in the mid 18th century and a community has existed in the city since that time. Today, although our congregation is modest in size, we have a proud sense of our own history and are deeply committed to transmitting this to the wider population through interfaith work, educational programs and community outreach.

Preserving and sharing this history will be of benefit both for the city of Norwich and its surroundings and for the wider the Anglo Jewish community. As England’s once sprawling Jewish communities become increasingly metropolitan in London in Manchester, it is important to preserve the Anglo Jewish history of regional towns and cities such as Norwich which, centuries ago were important centres of Jewish life. Our project will allow the wider Anglo Jewish community to appreciate that their roots in this country extend beyond what is the case today.

The project will update the post war communal hall, with a new and improved entrance hall, improved security, a new kitchen and much needed disabled toilets. The refurbished site will offer three distinct spaces suitable for display. Our synagogue sanctuary built in the 1960’s is a beautiful and welcoming light filled space with distinctive floor to ceiling stained glass windows and it needs little renovation except a full rewiring.

As you can see, work has begun, generously supported by our congregants and friends, and by local and national charities to whom we are deeply indebted. Although we have raised considerably more than our original target of £385,000, we were affected by the sudden and unexpected loss of our Treasurer in 2018. In the time it took for us to restart the project, costs had risen, and we also needed to pay for a project manager, a role we had anticipated that our Treasurer would undertake. Additionally, when the building was surveyed we found that all the electricals were in need of complete rewiring, not part of our original plan.