OPINION: Unseen but never undersold – the extensive reach of the United Synagogue

Last week I started a leadership course with senior leaders from across the civil service and public sector. Preparing to join, I was thinking through how to explain to non-Jewish leaders what the United Synagogue does to help them understand the central role we play in powering Jewish life in Britain.

I recently saw an advertising campaign for the Royal Navy which I decided to borrow. The Royal Navy – founded in 1546 by King Henry VIII – prides itself on “doing the unseen”. This adage is very fitting for the United Synagogue. We’re not quite as old as the Royal Navy – although we are celebrating our 154th birthday this summer – but we often carry out tasks for the Jewish community which nobody else will.

Although we’re known primarily for communities, each unique in size, demographic make-up and culture, our work is much wider. Just as the Royal Navy is responsible for some of the UK’s critical infrastructure such as keeping trade routes open, the United Synagogue runs much of the community infrastructure which others can’t or don’t want to do.

Get The Jewish News Daily Edition by email and never miss our top stories Free Sign Up

We coordinate Hospital Chaplaincy in Greater London and the surrounding areas so that our loved ones have access to a Jewish chaplain and support while in hospital. We run Prison Chaplaincy across the country to offer pastoral care to Jewish prisoners and ensure they have kosher food.

Our Chesed team regularly helps people in need who aren’t US members – and indeed who are beyond our community through our asylum seeker drop-in centres. Tribe programmes and summer camps are open to all young people. Our Burial Society quietly, efficiently and with great care, conducts many funerals each year for Jews who were not members of ours. Some of our work may not be glamorous, but it is essential.

More in Opinion

11 hours ago

We have the world’s greatest story — let’s tell it like it is

By Noam Weissman

June 2, 2026

Hate in schools has risen meteorically. What lessons are our children learning?

By Leo Pearlman

June 1, 2026

Volunteers week is a chance to turn concern into action

By Nicky Goldman

The highly-respected Office of the Chief Rabbi and London Beth Din – crucial for Jewish life in this country and abroad – are supported by the United Synagogue. All this of course is in addition to our shuls, many of which are hubs of thriving activity and offer social, educational and children’s programmes together with religious services. Our Rabbinic teams provide religious, spiritual, pastoral and educational leadership.

Synagogue membership numbers tell only part of our story. It’s true, as Josh Glancy wrote on these pages earlier this month, that fewer people are choosing to join synagogues today compared to his parents’ generation. This reflects the nationwide trend in membership organisations more widely. Despite this, the United Synagogue is still flourishing.

The United Synagogue is a charity which serves the British Jewish community in the broadest possible way. Whether you’re a member or not, you will have benefited from what we do, whether it’s being represented by the Chief Rabbi at the highest levels, benefiting from our welfare support, buying kosher food in any supermarket around the country or joining our events such as marking Yom Hazikaron and Yom Ha’atzmaut last week or the evening of prayer online last month when Iran launched hundreds of missiles at Israel.

We know we have to keep evolving to inspire and engage the next generation of Jews. One of my personal priorities is the empowerment of women and the creation of the next generation of female religious leaders. Engaging more young people is also top of the agenda.

Dorot, our ambitious initiative to reduce our environmental impact, together with our work to make our communities more accessible for people with physical disabilities and neurodivergence and our thriving social media platforms and online content offer new ways in for people to engage with the United Synagogue.

Our mission is to engage Jews with mainstream Orthodox Jewish living, learning and caring. Put another way, we want more Jews doing more Jewish things more of the time. Our vision is creating a community of inspired Jews, with enriched lives, passing our heritage on to future generations.

Like the Royal Navy, you might not see what we do. But with our communities supported by our incredible rabbinic teams, dedicated lay leaders and talented professionals, we’re working 365 days a year to deliver on this vision.

• Jo Grose, chief executive, the United Synagogue