Liverpool donors double their money

Merseyside Jewish Community Care has bucked the financial trend, reporting doubled donations from the local community.

The charity's AGM on Tuesday night was told that donations for 2010 were £104,000, up from £52,000 the previous year. The money was generated mainly from the Pesach and Rosh Hashanah appeals.

It has also escaped public spending cuts, with Liverpool City Council continuing to provide £30,000 for kosher meals and carer services.

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Blind historian guest at new dinner venue

Liverpool's Jewish forum dinners have been revived by a move to King David High School.

The first dinner at the new venue saw 60 people enwrapped by guest speaker Liverpool historian Steve Binns. The community historian, who has been blind from birth but received an MBE for contributions to Liverpool's heritage, spoke about the city's historic Jewish characters such as Zionist Bertram B Benas, while also speaking about his hero, former prime minister and Liverpool-born William Ewart Gladstone.

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New strategy for Labour Friends of Israel

Labour Friends of Israel has appointed a new director to oversee the parliamentary lobby group's work.

Jennifer Gerber replaces former director Luciana Berger, who was elected as an MP for the Liverpool Wavertree constituency in May.

Ms Gerber, from Finchley, north London, is a former director of Progress, a New Labour pressure group promoting radical and progressive politics.

She edited its magazine, for which she has written articles on Israel and antisemitism.

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Girl denied faith school place treks 60 miles

The family of Kayleigh Chapple, the Liverpool girl who was denied a place at a Jewish school under the new admissions rules, has decided not to apply for a judicial review. But legal action may still be taken against King David High School Liverpool, which denied her a place.

Eleven-year-old Kayleigh, from Liverpool, began her year at King David in Manchester last week after the school accepted her under its admissions policy. She was the first known halachically Jewish child to fall victim to the JFS Supreme Court ruling and be denied a place in a Jewish school.

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Liverpool shul cleans up

Flood damage to Liverpool's Childwall Synagogue last month will cost over £10,000 to repair.

Insurance assessors are still trying to gauge the exact cost of making good the partly collapsed roof over the Ada Shifrin Hall. Water damage to its parquet flooring is estimated at £2,000.

Childwall chairman Norman Goldstone says makeshift arrangements will allow the hall to be used for the large kiddush gatherings at Yomtov.

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Watch out for bogus buyers

Buying a football club is very expensive. Saying you are buying a football club, however, is as cheap as chips. One phone call, one off the record briefing and away you go. Most of us could manage that in our lunch hour. Maybe some of you have. We all made prank calls as children; this is merely the grown-up version.

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