Community
Rabbi Sybil Sheridan bids farewell to Newcastle after more than a decade
‘Rabbi Sybil has encouraged us and given us self-belief to step forward and actively lead’
August 5, 2025 13:55
‘Rabbi Sybil has encouraged us and given us self-belief to step forward and actively lead’
August 5, 2025 13:55Rabbi Sybil Sheridan has spoken of her sadness at leaving her pulpit at Newcastle Reform Synagogue after more than a decade.
Since arriving at the community in Northeastern England, Rabbi Sheridan has overseen an influx of younger congregants and families.
At a packed farewell service, she told the congregation: “I feel very sad to be leaving Newcastle Reform Synagogue, but I know the time has come to move on and make way for a new, younger rabbi to support our community.”
The service was full of members old and new, some of whom first met Rabbi Sheridan 45 years ago, when she arrived in Newcastle as a student rabbi. In her sermon, she reflected on that long connection, marvelling also at the renewed energy brought by younger families later joining. "This is the essential element of a sustainable, thriving community,” she said.
Her farewell weekend began with a Friday night dinner for nearly 50 guests, among them Rabbi Sheridan’s husband, Rabbi Dr Jonathan Romain, convenor of the Reform Beit Din.
Tributes were made during the services, including from NRS chair Linda Scott, who said: "We are so deeply indebted for everything that Rabbi Sybil has contributed to our community. Her dedication and commitment have strengthened us and helped us to grow...
“Rabbi Sybil has encouraged us and given us self-belief to step forward and actively lead, with so many volunteers now contributing to the life of the community. It has been an honour and privilege to work so closely with Rabbi Sybil over the past ten years, and I would like to personally thank her for all the support given to me and the community as a whole. I will miss her."
Honorary life president Brenda Dinsdale echoed the sentiments, saying: "Small communities like ours sometimes struggle to find rabbinic support, so our relationship with Rabbi Sybil has meant a great deal to NRS. She has guided us, encouraged us, taught us and, most of all, loved us."
Though Rabbi Sheridan now steps away from the NRS bimah, she remains committed to Jewish causes, including the Ethiopian Jewish community.
Rabbi Fabian Sborovsky, who Rabbi Sheridan inducted at Menorah Reform Synagogue, will be taking up the helm at the Newcastle congregation.