Mitzvah Day 365 will be expanding its interfaith social action programme thanks to an additional £20,000 in funding from the Pears Foundation. The money will enable the employment of a specialist worker.

Welcoming the support, Mitzvah Day's Laura Marks said it had never been more important "to build strong, personal interfaith relationships. Isolation, ignorance, prejudice and hatred will thrive unless we Jews go out of our comfort zone and reach out."