Multi-million pound grant for Jewish Blind & Disabled redevelopment

Jewish Blind and Disabled is about to launch a £15 million redevelopment of one of its key sites in north London, with the overhaul due to provide upgraded spaces and increased facilities at its East Finchley complex.

Work on the charity’s Fairacres development, opened almost 40 years ago, will begin next month, with the site’s current 29 one-bedroom apartments upgraded to ensure they are accessible to wheelchair users. In addition, 11 new apartments will be added, including 4 two-bedroom flats for families.

The redevelopment has been funded in part by an approximately £7 million grant from the Greater London Authority, with other money raised via donations and interest-free loans from individuals, families, trusts and foundations.

The GLA grant has been offered through a collaboration with the Joel Emanuel Trust (JET) which is part of Jewish Care.

Chair of Jewish Care Marcus Sperber said: “Our commitment to partnership is exactly why we stepped forward to support JBD on the Fairacres redevelopment, a project that is of real significance for the community’s long-term wellbeing.

“Through the Joel Emanuel Trust, we were able to unlock essential GLA funding that JBD could not have accessed alone, and together, we are helping to secure modern, accessible homes that will transform lives for decades to come. We are proud to play a role in making that possible.”

Chair at Jewish Blind & Disabled, Marc Gordon added; “We are a small community with limited resources. Having just completed an £11m new development in Mill Hill East, we knew that securing the funding required to undertake the much-needed Fairacres project from the community alone was going to be a huge challenge.

“We identified an opportunity to partner with a registered housing provider to secure government funding which would enable this project to proceed. Jewish Care was the obvious partner for us, and we are delighted that they have agreed to collaborate with us for the wider good of the community.”

Alongside the grant and generous donations, the project has secured £5m of 5 year interest free loans from individual philanthropists from within the community. The charity says it will “continue its fundraising efforts to repay the interest free loans and once they are repaid JBD will be in a position to find another development opportunity to meet the growing demand for its unique housing and support offering”.

Deputy Mayor for Housing and Residential Development, Tom Copley said: “We are really proud to be providing more than £7 million funding to support the redevelopment of Jewish Blind & Disabled’s Fairacres building in East Finchley. This is an exciting and significant affordable housing project which is being delivered in collaboration with the Joel Emanuel Trust, and I look forward to seeing work begin next month on the delivery of 40 high-quality, sustainable and accessible homes to benefit the local community.”

Work on Fairacres, which originally opened in 1987, is expected to be completed in late 2027.