Families with children

We welcome families with children of all ages. New members are encouraged to discuss how we can best meet their needs. At present we offer the following:

Monthly Friday evening family get-togethers

A group of families with children have a short monthly informal service on Zoom, which includes lighting of the Shabbat candles and the blessings over the wine and bread. These are friendly get-togethers for all the children and parents to greet each other, to welcome Shabbat and to join in with a selection of songs suitable for the age range. We sometimes have a story or activity related to the current festival. The length is always kept to 20-30 minutes to reflect everyone’s attention span!

To be added to the circulation list, please contact Michael using the CONTACT US page

Special events

Each year we make arrangements for children to meet up for something special……a Rosh Hashanah picnic…..a Chanukah party….. In addition, children are invited to join in with the community’s activities, such as the decoration of the Sukkah.

Liberal Judaism activities

We encourage families to be involved in activities arranged by Liberal Judaism. The movement has a programme of summer camps and events during the rest of the year, which we publicise to members who have children. These activities provide a great opportunity to meet up with children from other Liberal Jewish communities. Those children who attend are always very enthusiastic afterwards about their experience and keen to go again.

Bar- and Bat-mitzvah

Perhaps you are thinking about your son or daughter having a bar- or bat-mitzvah ceremony. The first step is to discuss this with Rabbi René Pfertzel, who will help to find a teacher to prepare your child and to make the arrangements for the ceremony.

Other initiatives

We are always interested in new ideas to involve families with children and you are welcome to talk them through with members of the Council.