‘I love the weather, the beaches and the sense of community. But I miss the book shops’

However, Sofer doesn’t think that antisemitism is the overriding factor, saying: “People move to Israel because they consider Israel their home.” Though he does concede that a spike in antisemitism can strengthen their resolve.

The advantages of starting a new life in Israel are manifold, says Sofer. For students, there are now 47 new programmes at top Israeli universities, where they can study a subject in their mother tongue. They can also get help with rent and support with ulpan – Hebrew lessons for new olim (immigrants).

“When students come to Israel as a group, they can build a community and strengthen one another,” he says.

The Israeli government has also increased support for families, offering subsidised rent in certain areas and helping professionals transition to new jobs in Israel.

Aliyah is not only good for olim, says Sofer, but for Israeli society too. “We are still building our state, and olim bring something unique to it.”

Sofer admits that the paperwork can be a headache, but his department is working on streamlining the process, and support is there from the Jewish Agency and organisations such as Shivat Zion.

But preparation is key, says Evers, “in order to make this step a smooth one and to ensure a good landing, rather than running away”.

​Cynthia Lyons, from Hendon, north-west London, is 80 and made aliyah in April, along with her daughter, Alexia, 53, and her granddaughter, Mitzi, now ten

Cynthia Lyons[Missing Credit]

​“Around 40 years ago, my late husband announced that he had made a visit to the Jewish Agency and that we were making aliyah. I said we couldn’t leave my parents behind.

“In the years that followed, he kept saying we should find a home in Israel, so when Alexia announced on our family WhatsApp group chat that she was making aliyah, I said: ‘If you’re going, so am I.’ My other daughter is already in Israel, my son lives in France and, if anything, I have more friends here than I do in the UK.

“I’ve settled into a very Anglo area of Netanya called Ir Yamim. The biggest challenge has been the language.

“To anyone who is thinking of moving here, I would say to them, however busy you are, try to learn some general conversation. I am planning to start ulpan, but as you get older, it gets harder and harder to learn a new language.

“Fortunately, I have found a wonderful Israeli lady called Chavi, who sat with me for two hours and helped me make doctor’s appointments and fill out forms for banking and health insurance. Everybody knows Chavi here, but in every town, there is always someone like her, someone ready to help you.

“Another benefit is the health service, which is fantastic. In the UK, a year will go by between GP appointments, but here, doctors drive you mad wanting to see you.

“Since the terrorist attack on Yom Kippur, I’m really pleased to be here. I could have lived out my years in the UK, but what future is there for my granddaughter? I have non-Jewish friends in the UK who are worried about me being here, but I’ve said to them not to worry about me – it’s the Jews in Europe and the UK they need to worry about.

“I didn’t realise how unrelaxed I was in the UK. In Israel, I can walk to shul without looking over my shoulder. I just feel very relaxed and safe here.

“I almost had to pinch myself when I arrived in Israel with my daughter and granddaughter. I am now Israeli, and I am living in Israel. This is my home.”

​Alexia Goldstein runs her own events organising business, LEXEVENTS

Alexia Goldstein[Missing Credit]

“It was never my intention to make aliyah – I didn’t think I would be able to deal with Israelis. I’m bringing up my daughter as a single mum and just thought to myself: ‘If we keep our heads down [living in London], then we’ll be OK.’

“But one Shabbat in May last year, I was in a park in Hendon, and a young couple who were sitting with their kids said they were making aliyah in two days’ time. When Shabbat went out, I switched on the TV and was watching Eden Golan in Eurovision. Seeing how brave she was amid all the booing, and what a strong unit she and her team were, made me think: ‘I want to be a part of that.’

“The actual aliyah process was horrendous, as – like the whole of Israel – it runs on very old systems. It’s the same with the schools. They don’t give you clear information; they do things with no rhyme or reason.

“But you can’t come to Israel and expect to change things. Instead, everything I was told not to do in England, I find myself doing here. I speak up a lot more than I did in the UK. You need to push here, otherwise, you won’t get anywhere.

“Driving in Israel is like taking your life into your own hands, but now I’ve become one of them. My mum holds onto her seat when I’m driving. I say: ‘Mum, get in the back; you’re driving me crazy.’

“In terms of the Jewish community, it’s so different to the UK. There is no judgment. Here you can walk around in a string bikini and yet daven – pray three times a day –  which is almost unheard of outside of Israel. You truly can be yourself. It feels very freeing; people live much more authentic Jewish lives.

“I feel like we haven’t traded sideways; we’ve traded up. The weather is amazing; the beach is close by. If you need help, it’s there. Israelis are so grateful when they hear you have made aliyah –  the owner of a TV shop refused to allow me to pay for the cable I needed, and my driving instructor wouldn’t take any money for my lesson. Israelis are honoured we have chosen to join them during a war.

“Following the attack on Yom Kippur, when I think of London, all that comes to mind is fear and grey. When I made the decision to come here, I thought to myself: ‘I would rather be able to walk to Israel in my own time rather than be chased out of the UK.’”

​Joseph Cohen runs YouTube channel Israel Advocacy Movement, which focuses on combatting anti-Israel activity and antisemitism. He was raised in northern England with little awareness of Judaism or Israel. He began to become more observant around 15 years ago, initially reaching out to Newcastle’s Jewish community and then studying at Gateshead. He made aliyah in April 2024

Joseph Cohen[Missing Credit]

“Two days after October 7, I went to Kensington and saw thousands of people celebrating the massacre. I was chased into a café by a mob that was baying for my blood. I was visibly Jewish and filming the protest while wearing a kippah. It took dozens of police to keep them from me.

“At other protests the police were less helpful, often telling me my presence there was provocative as I was visibly Jewish.

“The week after October 7, I was in the office at work, and for everyone else, it was just a normal day. They were chatting and smiling, but I and every other Jew I knew were broken. We were grieving. It was the first time I truly felt like a stranger in the country I grew up in.

“I left the UK… out of fear for my family’s safety. [On Yom Kippur,] my worst fears were confirmed. But the writing was on the wall. To my friends and family, [I would say], leave while you still can.

“I believe the Jewish people have an incredible opportunity to go and easily live in the country our ancestors believed in and prayed for.

“Life is so much richer here. You can’t take five steps without encountering our history. It’s the ultimate place for anyone who is truly connected to their Jewish identity. It’s beyond anything I could have imagined in terms of the quality of life.

“There are challenges of course, namely relearning how to be an adult again in this country.

“My car broke down this morning, and so now I’ve got to figure out how to buy a new car, register and insure it, without speaking Hebrew. But there are incredible organisations like Shivat Tzion who can help with the challenges olim face.

“One of the major positives about living here is the sense of community, which is unlike anything I’ve experienced before. It’s hard to describe until you experience it. Everybody knows each other and it feels like one giant extended family.

“There are also many little things that you appreciate, like when I went to collect a parcel the other day and the shelf was full of other people’s parcels. You just walk up and take your parcel. In the UK, I I think they’d all be stolen in a heartbeat.

“More than anything, this is the place we’d like to raise our children and instil in them the values we’d like them to have – values which have felt lacking in the UK for some decades.”

​Rafi Chalk, 19, was born in north London and raised in a “fairly” Orthodox community. He made aliyah a month ago and is now studying in yeshivah

Rafi Chalk[Missing Credit]

“The village I am in is in the middle of the desert and, coming from London, it’s a lot to get used to.

“There is a lack of crowds everywhere, and at night, it’s just absolutely silent. My yeshivah is right on the edge of the yishuv, so it feels like you’re living in the hills.

“To the east is the Dead Sea and to the west is Jerusalem, over which we can watch the sun set every evening. It’s very, very relaxing and peaceful. It was quite a recent decision of mine to make aliyah, and I got plenty of advice from my father and my brother, who made aliyah a few years ago, before I decided to do it myself.

“Besides studying, there is no end to the things you can do here. There is plenty of hiking, in literally any direction you want, and a brilliant music room at the yeshivah, with lots of instruments, from where you’ll pretty much always hear people strumming away on the guitar and singing.

“I would say the biggest challenge is learning Hebrew, but I take classes every day. My studies are half in English and half in Hebrew, and socialising over meals is all done in Hebrew. It’s intense, but I’m definitely speaking the language much more fluently than before I came.

“Israelis themselves are very different to your average Brit. It’s definitely a different culture, but I wouldn’t describe it as a shock coming here. Everybody is so phenomenally warm and friendly, and there are so many people here to offer support if you run into difficulties.

“Making aliyah is definitely everything I had hoped for. Every day, living in Israel is a highlight for me. I’ll be in the yeshiva for the rest of the year, but at the moment, I’m planning on staying here long after that.”

Gidi Ezra, 26, made aliyah in June 2024, with his wife, Felicity. He works as an economist for El Al, and Felicity works in education policy

Gidi Ezra[Missing Credit]

“I had always planned on making aliyah. My dad’s Israeli, I was born in Israel, I come from a very Zionist household and grew up in the UK as part of Bnei Akiva. Even though I already had an Israeli passport, I still had to go through the aliyah process.

“When October 7 happened, we did question whether it was then the right time to move to Israel, but we concluded that there was no better time to go. It brought to life everything I had learnt about the need for a Jewish state, and we felt there was no better way of showing faith and commitment than moving to Israel after the worst moment in the state’s history.

“It wasn’t a push factor, but a pull factor. I didn’t decide to move to Israel because I didn’t feel safe in the UK. I would wear my kippah on the street, and I attended a non-Jewish school without any problems, but when the attack on Yom Kippur happened, it justified our decision in another sense. The future for Jews in the UK is pretty bleak. Antisemitism has always been there, but it has now become normalised.

“We didn’t find the aliyah paperwork too bad. The biggest challenge was that it took time to get a job, but that’s a standard relocation issue. I could have moved to Spain and had the same issue.

“My wife doesn’t speak Hebrew, and she has been completely fine here. There is a very strong acceptance of olim, and people are good to you and willing to help.

“There is a real sense of togetherness. We live in Tel Aviv, and no one is the same in this city. Someone might give you grief in the supermarket, people have different political outlooks and there are arguments over whether buses should run on Shabbat, but when the issues are important, people come together. Everyone is fighting the same enemy.

“I’m modern Orthodox, so Judaism was already a big part of my life. I have joined a synagogue which isn’t quite United, but there is still a strong sense of community. It’s French Moroccan, and I was drawn to it by the community, the style of prayer and the wonderful rabbi. You don’t often find a shul like this in Tel Aviv.

“I miss my family and friends, and my wife misses book stores, but I would still really encourage people to move here if they are considering it. Life’s too short to stay in one place. Every country has its problems. It’s about picking your problems and picking your values and accepting that there may be challenges. The worst that can happen is that you’ll move back to the UK.”