Stamford Hill shidduch search finds an international audience

A MATCHMAKING initiative launched within the Stamford Hill community has gone global with

from the US, Israel, Belgium and Switzerland joining forces to help strictly Orthodox Jewish singles find a partner.

The Shidduch Project was launched by Agudas Yisroel GB in March, subse- quently being expanded to Manchester and Gateshead before being made available overseas. According to an Agudas Yisroel spokesperson, “more than 300 singles have signed up”, from 18-yearolds to divorcees and widows.

Although the service is web-based, to protect privacy, access is available only through an emailed link. Users can contact more than 60 matchmakers registered to the site. They will study profiles and determine potential matches.

The Shidduch Project marks the latest attempt by the strictly Orthodox community to address a “crisis” in finding life partners for singles, particularly women. It is hoped that widening the potential pool of matches will increase the likelihood of successful marriages. The spokesperson added that the project had already helped facilitate “a number of engagements”.