Two leading Jewish organisations have launched a major new initiative aimed at tackling antisemitism and improving healthcare outcomes for Jewish communities across England, reports The Jerusalem Post.
The Board of Deputies of British Jews and the London Jewish Forum have secured £1.5 million in funding from the National Lottery Community Fund to establish the Jewish Health Equality Partnership (JHEP), a five-year programme designed to address structural antisemitism and health inequalities affecting Jewish patients and healthcare professionals.
The funding represents the largest investment to date dedicated to addressing health inequalities experienced by Jewish communities in England. It will provide long-term support for JHEP, enabling it to work with healthcare providers, policymakers and community organisations to improve understanding of Jewish health needs and develop practical solutions to discrimination within the health sector.
Karen Newman, Vice President of the Board of Deputies of British Jews, welcomed the award, describing it as a transformative opportunity to tackle antisemitism, structural discrimination and other barriers that negatively affect healthcare outcomes for Jewish people.
Amanda Bowman, Co-Chair of the London Jewish Forum, said that everyone should be able to access healthcare or work within the NHS without experiencing prejudice. She said the new partnership would translate greater awareness of Jewish health needs into practical improvements in patient care and workplace culture.
The initiative follows a series of reports highlighting growing concerns about antisemitism within the UK’s healthcare system.
Last month, the government’s independent adviser on antisemitism, Lord John Mann, published a major review into antisemitism in the NHS. His findings described widespread concerns among Jewish healthcare staff, who reported experiencing routine exclusion and discrimination from colleagues. The review found that Jewish employees were the only religious group in the latest NHS Staff Survey to report an increase in workplace discrimination rather than a decline, with some considering leaving the health service as a result.
The review also found that antisemitism affects patients as well as staff. Some Jewish patients reported delaying or avoiding medical treatment because they feared encountering prejudice while receiving care.
Lord Mann concluded that racism remains a persistent problem within the NHS and argued that there is a clear need for stronger action to combat antisemitism alongside all other forms of discrimination.
Further concerns were raised this week by the independent NHS Maternity Review, led by Baroness Valerie Amos, which found that Jewish women and families, together with other minority groups, had experienced discriminatory treatment within maternity services.
Among the examples cited in the review was an incident in which a member of NHS staff allegedly told a Jewish family that „Jewish people are sneaky.”
BJ Woodstein, co-founder and spokesperson for Shifrah, an organisation supporting Jewish birth workers, described the review as a stark reminder of the difficulties faced by Jewish staff and patients. She said it highlighted how challenging, and in some cases unsafe, engagement with parts of the NHS had become for members of the Jewish community.
The launch of the Jewish Health Equality Partnership reflects growing recognition that tackling antisemitism within healthcare requires sustained, long-term action. Organisers hope the programme will improve understanding of Jewish communities’ needs while helping to ensure that both patients and healthcare professionals can access and provide care free from discrimination.
Photo credit: Matt Cardy/Getty Images
More News
