Seven people whose lives have been changed by Chabad told their stories to the 550 guests at the Chabad UK dinner in central London, which is estimated to have raised more than £500,000.

The speakers ranged in age from 11 to 94, the eldest being north Londoner Aubrey Nelson, who said it had taken him 90 years to find Chabad.

Four years ago, he had been walking near his West Hampstead home when he bumped into Rabbi Dovid Katz, who invited him to visit the new local Chabad house. "It wasn't so long before that meeting that I lost both my wife and my only son. Whether I found Chabad or Chabad found me I don't really know. But it has certainly given me a new lease of life.

"I go every morning for the shacharit service and always get a warm welcome. The youngsters come over and hug me and ask me how I'm doing. They treat me like a superstar.

"Chabad has given me a reason to go on and on. I feel like I'm the luckiest man in the world."

Another speaker was Jodeci Joseph, who did not know he was Jewish until the age of 10. Having attended a secular school, he moved to Ilford Jewish Primary.

Recalling his first day there, he said "if the fact that I was one of the very few mixed-raced students didn't make me stand out enough, the puzzled expressions on my face certainly did when I saw the other students with strange circular pieces of material on their heads and strings descending from their abdominal areas. At the time, all I could wonder was what is this religion I am now part of?"

Involvement in Chabad had made him "feel part of something". And when he had suffered depression, "it was my friends, family and the community at Chabad who supported me. Now look at me. I am 19 years old and a proud, confident Jew."

Giving an overview of the movement's work, Chabad UK's Rabbi Bentzi Sudak said it impacted on tens of thousands annually. It was currently evaluating areas Jews were moving to such as Shoredich, Greenwich and Fulham to ensure a Chabad presence where necessary.

To help fund its long-term objectives, it planned to hire a "talented and ambitious" chief financial officer. There was a shortfall of £1.4 million on its £7.4 million budget which the dinner proceeds would help to plug. Donors' contributions would support its work on campus, Jewish pride initiatives such as the menorah in Trafalgar Square and the movement's infrastructure.