‘The UK must be a place that the Jewish community can feel safe,’ says Lord Cameron at Jewish Care event
A record one thousand guests raised £440,000 at 36th annual Topland Group business lunch
One thousand guests gathered at the Grosvenor House yesterday in support of Jewish Care’s Topland Group Business Lunch, raising a record-breaking £440,000.
The funds raised will help support the charity’s vital services which touch the lives of 10,000 people each week. This was Jewish Care’s 36th Business Lunch and its 15th year of partnership with the Topland Group.
The guest speaker was The Right Honourable Lord Cameron, The Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Affairs and former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, who was interviewed by Lord Finkelstein OBE, former executive editor and current columnist for The Times newspaper.
Talking about the work of Jewish Care Lord Cameron, said: “The UK must be a place that the Jewish community can feel safe, which is why the work that organisations such as Jewish Care do to support older people is so vital. Right now and always. It was a privilege to attend the Topland Group Business Lunch, to hear about Jewish Care’s important work and to support efforts to raise the funds needed to ensure it continues.”
Jewish Care President, Steven Lewis said: “As we know, this year has been an incredibly difficult time for the community. For our Holocaust survivors it’s been particularly devastating – never again did they think they would witness some of what we are witnessing. For them, we’ve become a safe haven – where they can proudly be Jewish. For those living in areas where they no longer feel safe because of the threat of antisemitism, with us they can proudly share their Jewishness – and above all, they can feel safe.”
Chairman of the Topland Group business lunch committee, David Pollock, thanked guests for their support, highlighting some of Jewish Care’s vital services from the warm and vibrant community centres, including the Holocaust Survivors’ Centre and centres for people living with dementia, to the charity’s nine care homes for older people and people living with mental illness to the Meals on Wheels service, Jewish Care Direct helpline, Befriending service, support groups and more.
Since Jewish Care and Jami have recently announced plans to become one, the range of mental health support services will grow to support the increasing number of people living with mental illness and distress in the community.
Topland Group business lunch chairman, David Pollock said: “Never has it been more important in these difficult times for the community to come together, and it is incredible to see so many of you here, attending and supporting us, and the charity’s work.
“Most of Jewish Care’s services receive no government funding, and the cost to provide care services has significantly increased. It is the support from our guests today and from the community and beyond that will really enable Jewish Care to continue to meet the needs of our community, so thank you for giving generously today.”
Daniel Carmel-Brown, Jewish Care chief executive officer said: “We are so grateful to all of our guests who have helped to raise an extraordinary amount of money for our core services. With costs rising by £1 million in the last year, we need to raise nearly £17 million each year to keep all of our vital services going and today’s support will help us to continue to support the thousands of people in our community who rely on Jewish Care every day.
“My congratulations go to Amanda Barbanel and Jacqueline Harris, winners of this year’s Philip Greenwold Award, in recognition of their incredible inspiring achievements.”
Each year, an award is given in memory of Philip Greenwold to an outstanding individual or group who have made a significant contribution to others. This year, the award was presented to two teachers, Amanda Barbanel and Jacqueline Harris, who are co-founders of the charity, Give. Help. Share. which makes an impact on food insecurity.
During lock-down, they distributed food parcels to those who needed them in school. They now supply wholesome food bags to more than 2,000 families monthly in London and Hertfordshire and provide food education workshops to primary-aged pupils. Accepting the award, Amanda and Jacqueline, said: “We are truly honoured to accept this award and we want to extend our gratitude to the Topland committee for nominating us.”
Thank you for helping to make Jewish News the leading source of news and opinion for the UK Jewish community. Today we're asking for your invaluable help to continue putting our community first in everything we do.
For as little as £5 a month you can help sustain the vital work we do in celebrating and standing up for Jewish life in Britain.
Jewish News holds our community together and keeps us connected. Like a synagogue, it’s where people turn to feel part of something bigger. It also proudly shows the rest of Britain the vibrancy and rich culture of modern Jewish life.
You can make a quick and easy one-off or monthly contribution of £5, £10, £20 or any other sum you’re comfortable with.
100% of your donation will help us continue celebrating our community, in all its dynamic diversity...
Engaging
Being a community platform means so much more than producing a newspaper and website. One of our proudest roles is media partnering with our invaluable charities to amplify the outstanding work they do to help us all.
Celebrating
There’s no shortage of oys in the world but Jewish News takes every opportunity to celebrate the joys too, through projects like Night of Heroes, 40 Under 40 and other compelling countdowns that make the community kvell with pride.
Pioneering
In the first collaboration between media outlets from different faiths, Jewish News worked with British Muslim TV and Church Times to produce a list of young activists leading the way on interfaith understanding.
Campaigning
Royal Mail issued a stamp honouring Holocaust hero Sir Nicholas Winton after a Jewish News campaign attracted more than 100,000 backers. Jewish Newsalso produces special editions of the paper highlighting pressing issues including mental health and Holocaust remembrance.
Easy access
In an age when news is readily accessible, Jewish News provides high-quality content free online and offline, removing any financial barriers to connecting people.
Voice of our community to wider society
The Jewish News team regularly appears on TV, radio and on the pages of the national press to comment on stories about the Jewish community. Easy access to the paper on the streets of London also means Jewish News provides an invaluable window into the community for the country at large.
We hope you agree all this is worth preserving.
