Clocking up a growth in numbers
WALKING DOWN Golders Green Road, there is a decent chance of hearing a range of languages being spoken.
Today the North-West London suburb is home to a melting pot of communities and cultures. But it retains one of the UK’s largest Jewish communities, including a fast-rising Charedi and Israeli population. The shtiebls of the former explain a shul count in excess of 40 — and more than 30 Jewish schools.
Alongside the chain coffee shops and Polish supermarkets are close to 50 kosher restaurants, bakeries, shops and supermarkets. Golders Green is also the base for Jewish Care and a plethora of communal welfare projects.
Based on Census figures, the Institute for Jewish Policy Research (JPR) records a 34 per cent increase in Jewish population from 2001-2011, taking the community from 5,691 to 7,661.
The changes have been observed by Rabbi Dr Harvey Belovski of Golders Green Synagogue, which serves the traditional mainstream community.
“There is a café culture there never was before and you will notice on the street there is a lot of Hebrew spoken,” he says. “You might hear Yiddish in Stamford Hill but not in Golders Green.”
The shul — which is more than a century old — is itself attracting a broader and more youthful spectrum of worshippers, which the rabbi attributes to improved amenities for families.
“We have an excellent nursery and school [Rimon Primary is on its Dun- stan Road site]. But like anywhere in London, the cost of living makes it a challenge for families.”
He believes an extension to the North-West London Eruv — covering the Golders Green Estate west of the A41 and going towards Cricklewood — will entice others to the area.
“The houses on the other side of the A41 are more affordable,” he points out. “One of the reasons we pushed for the extension was because of the price of property.
“People who come to the shul and live that far out don’t want to be outside the eruv.”
Some 500 families belong to the synagogue and although the minister is keen to grow its numbers, he does not desire a membership of thousands. “It moves from rabbinic to crowd control at that point.”
As in many shuls, members range from those for whom religion is “a deep priority” to people “who come for social reasons, or see it as a centre. We cater to all of them.”
Located off Finchley Road in the direction of Temple Fortune, Alyth Reform has also had to adapt to meet the needs of a membership of 3,400, says minister Rabbi Mark Goldsmith.