The 17 rabbis, who are mostly associated with the conservative sections of the strictly Orthodox community and headed by the nonagenarian yeshivah head Rabbi Elyokim Schlesinger, called themselves the Rabbinical Committee of the Traditional Charedi Chinuch.
In a criticism of other representative efforts on behalf of Charedi schools, they said the government may have been given the impression that there was “somehow room for negotiations or compromises on the Orthodox Jewish education, altering even minutely, practices and lifestyles we have inherited from our previous generations…
“We have made it very clear, that we are obliged to follow by our Torah without changing anything whatsoever, and such individuals or organisations who indicate otherwise, do in no way represent our communities.”
They reported “a growing level of anxiety and anger amongst the thousands of parents whose children are pupils of our schools, and a strong feeling of dejection and grief among the school leaders and governors.
“These feelings are the result of the outrage felt over government pressure to make changes to the educational institutions that affect the very essence of our beliefs and practices."
Earlier this year the rabbinate of the broader-based Charedi education group Chinuch UK issued a statement to make clear that schools should not comply with any directive to talk openly about LGBT issues in class.
