Loughton Federation Synagogue has chosen a woman, Barbara Cohen, to chair its administrative board of management. But the position is not equivalent to a synagogue chairman.
Unlike the United Synagogue, which has recently allowed women to chair congregations, women in the Federation cannot serve as synagogue officers.
Separate from the administrative board, Loughton will have a male-only strategy board.
This is in accordance with a ruling drawn up five years ago by the head of the Federation’s Beth Din, Dayan Yisroel Lichtenstein. This allows women a larger role within their synagogues and, among the options, Dayan Lichtenstein suggested that one would be to split the board of management into two — one to deal with religious issues and a second to focus on non-religious matters.