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Margate Shul appeal

An appeal is being launched in Margate, Kent to prevent a 91-year-old synagogue from falling into the hands of property developers.

 

They say:


"The synagogue was built in 1929 for the then-flourishing Jewish community as well as regular holiday makers. In recent years, however, the congregation has dwindled to a few and the synagogue is no longer viable as a place of worship. It is due to be auctioned off by its trustees in December.
 

The campaign, run by a group of local artists and educators of Jewish heritage, is seeking to raise £400,000 to take over the freehold of Margate synagogue, with the intention of converting it to a Cultural Space for the local community, whilst also preserving the building’s Jewish origins. 

Help us to once again make the synagogue a vibrant focus for the area.

The Ciftonville Cultural Space CIC is a not-for-profit organisation whose vision is to convert the Margate Synagogue into a cross-community cultural hub which reflects the diversity of Cliftonville’s residents, whilst also retaining the integrity of the building’s Jewish origins through a permanent exhibition
celebrating the history of Jewish life in East Kent.
 

The word “synagogue” means “meeting together”, and the Yiddish word “Shul” translates as “school”. Our vision for the Space is for it to be an inclusive and welcoming hub for the entire community, bringing people together to experience and participate in a range of arts and cultural activities. We plan to present music, theatre and dance performances; to host film screenings, exhibitions, workshops and educational activities, while the Space’s Café will provide a much-needed drop in centre for local people
to enjoy food from a range of cultures.

It is equally important for us to preserve the Jewish history of the area and a permanent exhibition about Jewish Life in East Kent, created in collaboration with the Ramsgate Reform Synagogue, will keep that history alive. Cliftonville’s Jewish hotels and Kosher shops are now gone. The Synagogue is the last remaining building in the area to remind us of that history. It is important not to lose it.
Once the most affluent area of Margate, Cliftonville West, where the Synagogue is based, is now rated amongst the most disadvantaged areas in Kent and the country as a whole, and although many artists have moved into the area over the last five years, Thanet still scores highly on all the indices of
deprivation.

Long-term local residents have been joined by those of Polish, Czech, Slovakian, Romanian, Albanian and Roma heritage. A recent study showed that over 50 languages are spoken in Cliftonville’s primary schools. The Cliftonville Cultural Space will cater for people of all cultures with the aim of building social cohesion in the area.
There is no other multi-arts cultural space of this size in Thanet. The closest are in Whitstable (20 miles), Canterbury (20 miles) and Folkestone (30 miles). Therefore, not only will the Cliftonville Cultural Space be a valuable resource for local people, it will also attract those from outside the area.
 

The Margate Synagogue goes to auction on December 16th, with a reserve price of £275,000, but it is likely to go for significantly more than this, as developers are being encouraged to bid for it.
We therefore need to raise £400,000 to have a credible chance of getting this building and preventing it being converted to residential property – or possibly demolished for a new build. If we are able to secure the synagogue for less than this amount, any additional funds will go towards converting the building to a cultural space.

We realise that time is very short and would therefore urge interested parties who would like to help save this building through Grants, Donations, Sponsorship, Interest-free or low interest Loans to contact us as soon as possible at savecliftonvillesynagogue@gmail.com or contact Jan Ryan direct
at janryan@ukarts.com / +44 (0) 7778 168805.
 

If you would like to donate directly to the campaign please go to https://crowdfunder.co.uk/save-our-shul-margate
If we do not reach our target and are unable to buy the building, all fundsreceived will be returned in full.
Please help us to Save Our Shul!"

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