Facing the future: the provision of long-term care facilities for older Jewish people in the United Kingdom
4/ The
Jewish community's care system: formal provision for older people
people
Chapter 2 introduced the historical development of social care provision in the United Kingdom and discussed how Jews have
traditionally cared for older members of their communities. Chapter 3 outlined the UK system of formal care provision for
older people, including demographic projections, details of the different types of care provided, and key legislative and policy
changes likely to affect directly the Jewish voluntary sector. This chapter builds on these discussions to map out the current
system of Jewish formal care provision for older Jews living in the United Kingdom. This system reflects very strongly both
the influences and financial realities of the UK social care sector as a whole, but also the particular circumstances of British
Jewry, including the traditions, values and history of the community. Understanding this system, and having a baseline of
current levels of provision, is key to any future planning and strategic decision-making.
The first part of the chapter discusses the demography of British Jewry, including projections of the numbers of Jewish
older people and details of where Jews currently reside. In many ways Jews in the United Kingdom are demographic pioneers
for the rest of society, in terms of higher proportions of older people, higher (on average) socio-economic status and lower
birth rates. This demographic pattern is likely to be reflected across the whole of the population over the next two decades, so
that issues being faced now by Jewish formal care providers are extremely relevant for planners outside the community. The
second part of the chapter introduces the current range of services for older people provided by the UK Jewish voluntary
sector, including meals-on-wheels services, day centres, sheltered housing and institutional care homes.
The current demography of British Jewry
The Board of Deputies of British Jews has collected data on Jewish births, deaths and marriages for over 150 years.
According to the Community Research Unit (CRU) of the Board of Deputies, the UK Jewish population is currently estimated
to be around 280,000.(1) However, estimating the population of British Jewry is a notoriously difficult task, given problems
relating to definitions of 'who is a Jew' and the lack—until the most recent 2001 census—of a question on religion in the UK
national census. Data for the 2001 census are not yet available and, in any case, there are questions as to what extent Jews
chose to answer the religion question, which was voluntary. Many Jews see themselves as more an ethnic than a religious
group and, as such, may not have given 'Jewish' as their answer to a question on religion (there is no category of 'Jewish' in
the question on ethnicity). Some Jews may also have chosen not to give an answer either because they believe it is a state
intrusion on their private lives or because they fear identifying themselves to government sources (despite very strict laws in
place to protect the confidentiality of respondents).(2)
The CRU method for estimating population size is based on the number of deaths recorded in the Jewish community, on
the assumption that anyone who lives as a Jew will want to be buried according to a Jewish rite. Nevertheless, it is important
to note that British Jewry is not homogeneous, with several different branches including strictly Orthodox, central Orthodox,
Masorti (Conservative) and Progressive (including Reform and Liberal) groupings. Approximately 70 per cent of the Jewish
population are affiliated to a synagogue (either through personal or family membership). Of these Jews:
Nevertheless, synagogue membership is not necessarily a precise indicator of religious lifestyle. Overall, one in every three
British Jewish adults (31 per cent) think of themselves as 'traditional' Jews, 26 per cent 'secular', 18 per cent 'just Jewish', 15
per cent Progressive, and 9 per cent 'strictly Orthodox'.(3)
In addition to the CRU method for calculating the UK Jewish population, there are two other commonly used approaches
that are worth mentioning. The first is based on halakhah (Jewish law), according to which a person is deemed Jewish only if
they are born of a Jewish mother or else converted under the auspices of Orthodox authorities. Jews who convert under
Progressive auspices are not considered 'legally' Jewish by Orthodox authorities, and thus would be excluded by this method.
Moreover, this method includes people who may be considered 'legally' Jewish, but have no active connection or interest in
Judaism and may thus choose never to make use of Jewish welfare services.
The second method is based on self-identification, with the assumption that anyone who considers themselves Jewish
should be included in any total, regardless of questions of halakhah. However, while this is useful for obtaining a
representative sample, it does not easily allow overall population rates to be calculated. All definitional approaches for
counting Jews are problematic, with different methods useful for different purposes. As such, population figures and future
demographic projections must be considered indicative, rather than definitive.
Figure 4.1 shows how the UK Jewish population increased steadily from 25,000–30,000 in 1850 to around 60,000 in 1880.
From 1880 to 1915 the Jewish population increased by around 500 per cent, as large numbers of immigrants fled to Britain
from state-sanctioned pogroms in Tsarist Russia.4 Numbers of Jews continued to increase until the 1950s, reaching a peak of
up to 430,000 (although recent research suggests that this is probably an over-estimate). Since the 1950s numbers of Jews in
the United Kingdom have shown a steady decline, with the population at the turn of the twenty-first century more than 25 per
cent lower than that of fifty years ago. This decline is due to a combination of factors such as emigration, low fertility rates
and assimilation resulting from the marriage of Jews to partners outside the Jewish community.
The latest data from the CRU show how numbers of births, deaths and marriages have all tended to fall over the last ten
years. Births have fallen from over 3,300 in 1990, to around 2,500 in 1999. Burials and cremations under Jewish auspices
have fallen from an average of 4,873 in 1975–9, to 3,791 in 2000. Marriages have also declined in recent years, so that in
2000 there were 907 synagogue marriages in the community, a slight decrease on the average of 947 for 1995–9. The decline
in Jewish marriages parallels the situation in the United Kingdom as a whole, where national marriage rates have fallen by 3–
4 per cent per annum since the early 1970s. The exception to this decline comes from the more Orthodox elements of the
community so that the average age for first marriages in the more observant Union of Orthodox Synagogues is 6–7 years
younger than in central Orthodox synagogues. The only vital statistic to show an increase in recent years is gittim (religious
divorces), of which there were 269 in 2000. Finally, it is worth noting the regional variations in patterns of vital statistics.
There are relatively more marriages and fewer deaths in London than in the regions, reflecting the higher proportions of older
people in towns and cities outside the capital (see Table 4.1).(6)
Table 4.1 Synagogue marriages and deaths according to region, 2000(7) Total
In terms of the overall geographic distribution of the British Jewish population, it is estimated that there are over 80 towns
and cities with identifiable Jewish populations, ranging from just a handful of Jews in places such as Newport, Torquay and
Dundee to 30,000 in Manchester and 196,000 in Greater London. Figure 4.2 shows this distribution, which highlights the
wide range of areas populated by Jews, although around 50 of these towns have fewer than 300 Jews, and indeed several have
populations of as few as 10 individuals.(8) Outside London, the greatest concentration of Jews is in Manchester, which has
around 10 per cent of the UK Jewish population. Manchester's Jewish population has remained fairly constant over recent
years, reflecting in particular a growth in numbers of strictly Orthodox Jews. The strictly Orthodox community has increased
from a just a handful in the 1950s, to around 5,000 in 1999, mostly located in the Broughton Park and Prestwich districts of
the city.(9) In contrast, almost all other regional communities have shown steady demographic decline. For example, up to
30,000 Jews lived in Glasgow immediately after the Second World War; this population has halved every generation since,
and currently stands at less than 7,000.(10)
Greater London has the largest concentration of Jews in the United Kingdom, with most Jews living in the north-west part
of the city. The borough of Barnet has the largest number of Jews in London at 50,000, i.e. 1 in 4 of all London Jews, or 1 in
6 of the total population of that borough. Hackney has the second largest number, with around 18,000 Jews, Redbridge
16,000, and Harrow 14,100. South of the River Thames there are an estimated 16,400 Jews, who are fairly evenly distributed
across the twelve boroughs (with a further 2,500 in North Kent and North Surrey). Outside the Greater London boundary,
there is a sizeable population in South Hertfordshire (8,000 Jews), where two new Jewish primary schools have recently been
established.(12)
Demographic projections of older UK Jews
Table 4.2 Projections of Jewish population 75+ based on government actuary death rates (death rates adjusted for social class)(14)
If the figures from Table 4.2 are indexed at 100 for the start year of 1999—to show percentage changes over time—the
rapid increase in the number of the 'oldest old' (Jews over 90) is evident, in contrast to the rest of the older population, which
will stay relatively steady or decline over the next decade (see Figure 4.4). This contrasts notably with the overall UK
population projections (see Figure 3.1), which suggest less dramatic increases in those aged 90 or over during the next ten
years.
The demography of British Jewry differs markedly from the United Kingdom population as a whole. These differences are
due mainly to the fact that British Jews tend to be of above average socio-economic status, with 54 per cent of working Jewish
men and 50 per cent of working Jewish women in professional and managerial occupations, compared with 10 per cent of
men and 8 per cent of women in the general population.(16) Socio-economic status is closely linked to demography: those in
the higher brackets are likely to live longer and have fewer births. Some 23 per cent of British Jews are 65 or over, compared
with 16 per cent in the United Kingdom as a whole. Approximately 14 per cent of British Jews are aged 75 or over, as
opposed to 7 per cent of the general population.(17) Forty-one per cent of Jews are aged 35 or under, compared with 48 per
cent in England and Wales. In 1989–93 the average (median) age of death was 79 for Jewish men and 82 for Jewish women,
compared with 73.6 and 79.6 respectively for England and Wales.(18)
The future demography of British Jewry is likely to be affected by three further particular attributes of the community. The
first is the effect of a history of emigration, particularly to Israel and the United States, which means that a proportion of Jews
born in the United Kingdom will not be living in the country when they are older. The second factor is the impact of inter-
marriage, with 44 per cent of men under the age of 40 marrying non-Jewish women.(19) There are questions as to whether these
individuals and their spouses will want Jewish social services when they are older, and the extent to which Jewish agencies
will accommodate them if they do (see Chapter 9). The third factor is the impact of the rapid increase in recent years of the
percentage and overall numbers of strictly Orthodox Jews. In 1995 it was estimated that strictly Orthodox Jews accounted for
around 10 per cent of the Jewish population; however, with much higher fertility rates—having 7, 8 or 9 children is
common—their share is expected to increase. Indeed, the number of children in strictly Orthodox schools and nurseries has
almost doubled over the last ten years, accounting for 43 per cent of the total number of Jews attending Jewish day schools.(20)
London
Regions
Number
Percentage
Number
Percentage
Marriages
674
74
233
26
907
Deaths
2,580
68
1,211
32
3,791
In terms of the numbers of older Jewish people in the United Kingdom, the CRU estimates that there are currently 63,000
Jews aged 65 or over, of whom some 38,000 are aged 75 or over. The number of Jews aged 75 or over is expected to remain
relatively steady over the next ten years, although the numbers aged 90+ are expected to increase by 50 per cent to almost
8,000.
Age
1999
2002
2005
2008
2011
75–9
11,900
12,600
11,500
11,500
12,200
80–4
11,200
10,200
10,900
10,000
10,100
85–9
9,000
8,500
7,800
8,400
7,800
90+
5,200
7,400
7,800
7,600
7,900
Total
37,300
38,700
38,000
37,500
38,000
Current provision of services to older people
The Jewish voluntary sector is similar to the overall system of welfare for older people in the United Kingdom in that it
provides a range of services, from meals-on-wheels to sheltered housing, day care centres to institutional care. Thousands of
paid and unpaid (volunteer) staff help deliver these services every week, which are provided by dozens of different
organizations and agencies. Indeed, across the UK Jewish voluntary sector there are almost 2,000 financially independent
organizations, operating in fields as diverse as education, religion, culture and social care. Financially, social care is the single
largest component of this sector, accounting for 27 per cent (£135 million) of the total income.(21) This part of the chapter
details some of the key elements of this system (domiciliary services and day centres, sheltered housing and institutional care).
First, however, it is important to recognize the semi-formal levels of care that are also provided by the Jewish community.
The Jewish community provides a range of such semi-formal activities every week, making differing levels of care
available to older Jews or others requiring community assistance. For example, synagogues across the religious spectrum
provide luncheon or friendship clubs for older people. The Association of Jewish Friendship Clubs co-ordinates the activities
of around 50–60 such clubs, which provide speakers, entertainment, activities and welfare information for several thousand
people aged 60 or over. Other semi-formal organizations—likewise often linked to individual synagogues and rabbis—
include those for visiting the sick or arranging kosher meals in hospitals, bereavement counsellors and burial societies.(22) The
most extensive networks of semi-formal charitable services for British Jews are, however, to be found in the strictly Orthodox
communities.
The United Kingdom contains four main strictly Orthodox communities: Gateshead; Broughton Park in Manchester;
Golders Green/Hendon in North-west London; and Stamford Hill in North-east London. These communities all have their
own systems of self-help so that, in Broughton Park, for example, there is a hesed (literally 'kindness') list that offers a range
of over 120 items available for members to borrow, or services to use, free of charge. The
hesed list works through people
volunteering items for loan, with the details collated, printed and distributed to community members. The list is updated every
twelve months or so, and anyone wishing to make use of the facilities simply telephones the number of the person who runs
the particular service, and makes the arrangements, such as when and where to collect/return the items borrowed. Items that
can be borrowed range from crockery and cutlery, to medical equipment such as wheelchairs and breathing monitors. In
addition, the community also runs its own ambulance service called hatzolla. This is a network of trained first-aid workers and
on-call doctors who can be contacted by telephone at any time of the day or night, providing rapid medical care for those in
need. This semi-formal system, which is delivered at the local level, is one important way in which the community supports
individual members.(23)
Domiciliary services and day centres Alongside ordinary day centres, there are a also a small number of facilities especially designed to cater for older people
suffering from confusion, including dementia (such as Alzheimer's disease). These centres are similar to ordinary day centres,
and typically provide transportation, personal care (such as bathing and chiropody), kosher meals, and visits and activities.
Nevertheless, they are able to cater for these older people in a more therapeutic manner and to support their carers.
In addition to day centres, the Jewish community offers a range of services that can be provided in people's own homes.
These include kosher meals-on-wheels services, which is one of the most traditional forms of UK Jewish charitable activity.
These meals are cooked and distributed by a range of different agencies, including day centres, local charities and
organizations such as Jewish Care and the League of Jewish Women. Some of these services are paid for by local authorities,
while others are voluntarily donated by Jewish charities. Somewhere in the region of 1,700–3,000 meals are distributed each
week by Jewish organizations, although the precise figure is difficult to determine given that many organizations are uncertain
as to how many they deliver and whether they are in partnership with other agencies (which would result in double counting).
Cities such as Manchester and London have multiple providers, with, it seems, relatively little co-ordination between them:
there is little or no attempt to reduce costs through bulk purchasing or to co-operate with regard to what should be paid by the
community and what by local councils. In addition, some local authorities provide kosher services directly (independently of
Jewish charities) and there is also a Hospital Kosher Meals Service that provides 3,000–4,000 meals per week to Jewish
patients of all ages. The difficulty in obtaining information from meals-on-wheels providers suggests an urgent need for them
to work together and to share ideas, thus avoiding any wasteful duplication of time and services (see Chapter 9).
Cities with a sizeable Jewish population also have dedicated Jewish social service agencies that are able to provide or
organize domiciliary services. In Greater London and the South-east, Jewish Care runs a range of services, such as the KC
Sasha Centre, which records the Jewish Chronicle newspaper, Jewish-type books, newsletters and items of interest on to audio
tapes for the use of the blind and partially sighted. There are also dedicated social workers who assess and can arrange for the
social care needs of older people (and other members of the community). Social workers may help people with a range of
activities from moving home (for example, to sheltered accommodation or a care home) to organizing kosher meals-on-
wheels. Jewish Care also runs the Kennedy Leigh Home Care service, which consists of a team of trained care assistants who
help people remain independent in their own homes. Services provided include personal care (such as bathing and dressing),
practical assistance in the home, shopping, preparing meals and escorting clients to hospital appointments. Jewish Care also
runs an Admiral Nurse Service (admiral nurses are able to assist and support carers looking after someone with memory
problems, confusion, Alzheimer's disease and other forms of dementia by providing information and advice). Indeed, many
Jewish social service agencies are trying to cater more for the needs of carers, such as Project Smile run by the Manchester
Jewish Federation.
Sheltered housing
Table 4.3 Total housing units of UK Jewish housing associations, 2000
Table 4.4 Units for older people held by UK Jewish housing associations, 2000
Institutional care
Table 4.5 Number of organizations and homes providing residential and nursing care in the UK Jewish voluntary sector, 2001 In terms of the overall distribution of registered places, there are currently almost 2,500 bed spaces available in Jewish
residential and nursing voluntary sector care homes (see Table 4.6). Thus, around 1 in 25 Jews aged 65 or over are in long-
term Jewish voluntary sector care homes, with many others in private facilities (see later). Approximately two-thirds of the
registered bed places in the UK Jewish voluntary sector are classed as residential, with regional communities having more bed
spaces per person than in London and the South-east: around 75 per cent of all UK Jews live in London and the South-east,
but only 62 per cent of registered places are located there. Much of this imbalance is due to numbers of nursing home places,
with the regions having a much higher proportion of nursing beds relative to residential beds than in London and the South-
east. The pattern of London and the South-east (one nursing bed for every two residential beds) is in line with the United
Kingdom as a whole (see Table 3.7). The reasons why regional areas have many more nursing places is not clear, but may
simply reflect a historical tradition in these areas for offering nursing care.
Table 4.6 Residential and nursing homes in the UK Jewish voluntary sector, 2000 Figure 4.5 shows the distribution of care homes in Britain according to the size of individual institutions and whether
they provide residential, nursing or dual forms of care. When compared with Figure 4.2 it is clear that most towns with a
sizeable Jewish population have at least one care home. The two largest homes in the regions are Heathlands in
Manchester, which has places for more than 250 residents, and Donisthorpe Hall in Leeds with over 180. This compares
to the average number of places in England of 12 in independent residential homes, 29 in all local authority homes, 37 in
nursing homes, and 40 in dual registered homes.(24) Cardiff, Newcastle, Nottingham and Southport, which all have Jewish
populations of less than 1,500, still manage to support a care home. The survival of these institutions in what were once
cities with much larger Jewish populations reflects the fact that in declining regional towns and cities older Jews are more
likely to remain than younger Jews. The population is thus weighted in terms of older people and hence the market for
long-term care remains (at least in the short term). These homes are also likely to draw in residents from surrounding
areas, although some are also now taking in non-Jewish residents for the first time (see Chapter 8).
Figure 4.6 shows the distribution of voluntary sector care homes in Greater London. This map demonstrates the remarkable
concentration of homes in the north-west sector of the city, with 14 of the 19 London homes within 8 kilometres of each other,
mostly in the southern part of Barnet. There are two further homes in Hackney (including the AIHA Beis Pinchos home that
caters specifically for the strictly Orthodox community), one in Redbridge and one in Brent. South of the river, the only home
is the very large Nightingale House, which is apparently the largest home for older people in Europe with over 300 residents.
It is noticeable that the London borough of Harrow (14,100 Jews) does not have a care home, and neither does South
Hertfordshire (8,000 Jews).
Within Greater London, a report by Michael Jimack showed that in 1992 there were 1,572 long-term residential and
nursing beds in the Jewish voluntary sector. This is very similar to the current situation, although Jimack did expect the
number of beds to increase to 1,739 by 1994.(25)
Also of interest are the average ages of clients in Jewish voluntary sector care homes, with the mean average being 88
years old, and indeed almost 90 in the London area. This compares with England as a whole, where 75 per cent of residents
are aged 80 or over, but represents a large rise compared to a generation ago. In the 1960s and 1970s service providers in
Jewish voluntary sector homes noted the average age of residents as being closer to 70; indeed, some residents used to drive
their own cars. This change reflects new government funding regulations for long-term care and different attitudes towards
care among the public, as well as the fact that the functional abilities of older people are being maintained longer through
improved medical and domiciliary services. To gain local authority funding for long-term care, residents have to be shown to
have ever-greater levels of need; thus clients tend to be older, frailer and have higher levels of disability or long-standing
illness. The Department of Health estimates that just over 50 per cent of older people in care homes have cognitive
functioning problems (for example, Alzheimer's disease or other forms of dementia), compared with only one per cent of the
older population generally.(26) Unsurprisingly, care homes have many more female residents than male, with an overall
average of 28 per cent males and 72 per cent females in Jewish voluntary facilities (see Table 4.7). This is similar to England
as a whole, where 76 per cent of those aged 65 or over in care homes are female.
Table 4.7 Average age and percentage of female clients in Jewish voluntary sector care homes, 2000
In addition to care homes in the Jewish voluntary sector—those run by not-for-profit Jewish organizations—there are also
many private homes in which Jews live. As Chapter 2 showed, there has been a rapid increase over the last twenty years in the
number of independent (private and voluntary) care homes: in 1999, just over 90 per cent of residential care homes in the
United Kingdom as a whole (and 83 per cent of places) were in the independent sector.(27) Michael Jimack's report on the
Jewish system of care estimated that, in those London boroughs where large numbers of Jews live, there were 34 homes that
catered for almost 1,100 Jewish residents. Jimack noted that these homes varied considerably in how they catered for Jews,
with the majority limiting their activities to providing either kosher meals (cooked by external Jewish catering firms) or a
vegetarian diet.(28)
An analysis in 2001 of the 38 private care homes in the borough of Barnet showed that these had 1,048 registered places
(625 residential and 423 nursing). Jews occupied just over one-quarter of these places, approximately 175 in residential
facilities and 115 in nursing homes. Only three members of staff in these homes were Jewish. Although most of the homes
stated that they could provide kosher food, many did not provide Jewish social and cultural activities on the premises but were
prepared to transport residents to local Jewish day centres or synagogues if this was requested. Nevertheless, around two-
thirds of the Jews living in private facilities are accounted for by five care homes that have a majority of Jewish clients. These
homes provide much more in the way of Jewish activities (and kosher food) than do the others. In addition, there are also
some 591 registered places in non-Jewish voluntary sector homes in Barnet, of which around 20 are currently occupied by
Jews.
Overall, Barnet has 741 registered places in Jewish voluntary sector homes (530 residential and 211 nursing), with a
further 310 Jews living in private facilities or non-Jewish voluntary sector homes. Thus, there is an approximate ratio of seven
Jews in Jewish voluntary sector homes for every three in private or non-Jewish facilities. If this pattern is reflected across the
United Kingdom, then around 1 in 19 older Jews are currently living in residential or nursing homes (whether voluntary or
private, Jewish or non-Jewish). This figure is similar to the overall ratio of 1 in 20 for England and Wales as a whole (see
Chapter 3).
While institutional care accounts for the lion's share of spending on formal older people's services, far more people actually make
use of domiciliary services and/or attend day centres run by communal Jewish organizations. Across the United Kingdom there are
twenty-one formal Jewish day centres for older people, which cater for approximately 3,000 Jews each week. These are open for
different periods of time, from only one day a week to six. Some are independent, while others are run by larger community
organizations such as Jewish Care, the League of Jewish Women and the Association of Jewish Refugees. Some of the larger ones
provide transportation for users, and nearly all provide a kosher lunch as well as tea, coffee and biscuits throughout the day. The
day centres typically offer a range of activities such as quizzes, bridge clubs, exercise classes, discussion groups and entertainment
sessions. Some larger day centres—such as some of those run by Jewish Care—may even have such facilities as a gift shop (selling
items such as greeting cards and toiletries), a reminiscence room, a dress shop, a hairdressers, a chiropody service, a television
room, a library, and arts and crafts workshops. Most day centre users reside in their own homes, but some also come from
residential and nursing homes; indeed, a couple of day centres are based in care homes.
Twenty-four Jewish organizations are members of the National Network for Jewish Social Housing, the majority of which
provide dedicated housing for older people. These organizations have a total stock of around 4,000 flats and houses, just
under three-quarters of which are based in the Greater London area. Jews currently occupy around 2,700 of these units. The
largest single provider is the Industrial Dwelling Society with over 1,200 units, although Jews occupy only one-fifth of these.
Bnai Brith JBG is the largest provider of specifically Jewish social housing, with over 95 per cent of its total stock of more
than 650 units occupied by Jews. Other major providers include Jewish Blind and Disabled (JBD), the strictly Orthodox
Agudas Israel Housing Association (AIHA) and, outside London, Leeds Jewish Housing Association, Liverpool Jewish
Housing Association and Glasgow Jewish Housing Association. Around half of the stock is designated for older people, while
the rest is mixed social housing (see Tables 4.3 and 4.4).
Number of
organizations
Total housing
units Units occupied
by Jews
London and South-east
16
2,870
1,740
Regions
8
1,100
925
Total
24
3,970
2,665
Older people
housing units Older people
units
occupied by Jews
London and South-east
1,310
1,160
Regions
700
565
Total
2,010
1,725
In terms of residential and nursing homes, there are 21 separate organizations, providing care for older people in 36 homes
(see Table 4.5). There are more organizations in the regions providing care than in London and the South-east, although the
capital has, by far, the largest number of facilities. This reflects the dominance of Jewish Care in the South-east, which, as a
single organization, provides almost two-thirds of Jewish voluntary sector bed spaces in the capital. In Manchester there are
four separate organizations providing care facilities, while Birmingham, Bournemouth, Cardiff, Glasgow (with two homes),
Leeds, Liverpool, Newcastle, Nottingham and Southport each have one.
Number of
organizations
Number of
homes
London and South-east
8
22
Regions
13
14
Total
21
36
Residential
places Nursing
places Total
registered
places
London and South-east
1,050
485
1,535
Regions
540
420
960
Total
1,590
905
2,495
Age of clients
(male and female) Percentage of
female clients
London and South-east (mean)
average
90
71
Regions (mean) average
85
80
Range
78–95
55–90
Overall (mean) average
88
72
Conclusions
Planning for the future directions of the UK Jewish voluntary sector requires a complex assessment of a range of factors,
including the changing aspirations and expectations of the population, government legislation and available resources.
Nevertheless, two of the key elements are the probable demographic changes and the system of care currently being provided.
In terms of demographics, the Board of Deputies of British Jews calculates that over the next ten years the number of Jews
aged 75–89 will remain fairly steady, or even decrease slightly, but that there will be a large increase in the number of those
aged 90+ (the age group most likely to need formal care services). At first sight these demographic changes suggest a need for
an increase in sheltered housing and institutional provision by the Jewish community. However, when other factors of the
equation are considered—especially the impact of current and future government legislation—such growth is likely to be
more than mitigated. There is an extensive system of care services provided by Jewish community organizations across the
United Kingdom, from meals-on-wheels to day centres, domiciliary social services to institutional care. The future of these
services is dependent on the financial and volunteer support from an ever-reducing number and proportion of economically
active Jewish citizens.
Notes
1 Schmool and Cohen.
2 See Barry Kosmin, Ethnic and Religious Questions in the 2001 UK Census of Population: Policy Recommendations (London:
Institute for Jewish Policy Research 1999).
3 See Commission on Representation of the Interests of the British Jewish Community,
A Community of Communities: Report of the
Commission on Representation of the Interests of the British Jewish Community (London: Institute for Jewish Policy Research 2000).
4 See Alderman; Lloyd Gartner, The Jewish Immigrant in England 1870–1914 (London: Simon Publications 1973); and Henry Pollins,
Economic History of the Jews in England (London: Associated University Presses 1982).
5 Data taken from Stanley Waterman and Barry Kosmin, British Jewry in the Eighties: A Statistical and Geographical Study
(London:
Board of Deputies of British Jews 1986), and Schmool and Cohen.
6 Board of Deputies of British Jews, Report on Community Statistics for 2000
(London: Board of Deputies of British Jews 2000); Board
of Deputies of British Jews, Report on Community Statistics for 1999 (London: Board of Deputies of British Jews 1999).
7 Board of Deputies of British Jews (2000).
8 Data from Stephen Massil (ed.), The Jewish Year Book 2001 (London: Vallentine Mitchell 2001).
9 Oliver Valins, 'Identity, Space and Boundaries: Ultra-Orthodox Judaism in Contemporary Britain', Ph.D. thesis, University of
Glasgow, 1999.
10 See Kenneth Collins, Second City Jewry (Glasgow: Scottish Jewish Archives 1990); Elaine Samuel and Charlotte Pearson, 'The
Jewish community of Greater Glasgow: population and residential patterns', Department of Social Policy, University of Edinburgh,
1999.
11 Map drawn from data in Massil (ed.). Note that the Board of Deputies is currently updating its UK Jewish demographic projections
and population statistics, but these were unavailable at the time of writing.
12 Schmool and Cohen.
13 Map drawn from data in Schmool and Cohen.
14 Data from the Board of Deputies of British Jews.
15 Data from the Board of Deputies of British Jews.
16 Stephen Miller, Marlena Schmool and Antony Lerman,
Social and Political Attitudes of British Jews: Some Key Findings of the JPR
Survey (London: Institute for Jewish Policy Research 1996).
17 The percentage of people aged 75 or over in the United Kingdom as a whole has increased from 4 per cent in 1971 to 7 per cent in
1998: see Office for National Statistics, Living in Britain: Results from the 1998 General Household Survey (London: Stationery
Office 2000).
18 Schmool and Cohen.
19 Miller, Schmool and Lerman.
20 Valins, Kosmin and Goldberg; see also Oliver Valins, 'Institutionalised religion: sacred texts and Jewish spatial practice',
Geoforum,
vol. 31, 2000, 575–86.
21 Halfpenny and Reid.
22 See, for example, United Synagogue, Care Matters: A Directory of Information for Care Providers in the United Synagogue (London:
United Synagogue 2001).
23 Valins, 'Identity, Space and Boundaries'.
24 Department of Health, Community Care Statistics 1999: Residential Personal Social Services for Adults, England, Statistical Bulletin
2000/2 (London: Department of Health Publications 2000).
25 Michael Jimack, Residential Care and Nursing Provision for the Elderly in the Greater London Jewish Community (London: Jewish
Care 1992).
26 UK figures from Department of Health, 'Health survey for England: The health of older people—First release tables', press release,
29 June 2001.
27 Department of Health, Community Care Statistics 1999.
28 Jimack.