The Sussex Jewish Representative Council provides a central contact point for all Jewish organisations in Sussex. We are also affiliated to the Board of Deputies of British Jews.

Our remit is to act as the presiding body of the Sussex Jewish community, as an umbrella organisation embracing all synagogues and Jewish organisations within the Sussex area. Our main objective is to protect and further the interests of the Sussex Jewish community. The Council offers the community the opportunity to work as one and acts as the voice of the local Jewish community.

We promote and co-ordinate community cohesion by facilitating and endorsing cross communal issues and we initiate and organise major cross community events. We also maintain the Communal Diary and are Administrators for the Community Renewal Fund.

The Council is made up of delegates from each of the Jewish organisation in the community. The role of the delegate is to communicate Council matters to his or her own organisation.  In addition, the delegate should report major activities in their own organisation and bring to Council any problems they may be encountering, which could impact on the whole community.

The day to day running and co-ordination of the Council in undertaken by the Executive, a small team elected by the delegates or co-opted by the Chair Team. In recent years the Council has been chaired by a small group from the Executive.  The ‘Chair Team’ are Beryl Sharpe (President) Jessica Rosenthal (Hon. Secretary) Sarah Wilks and Debra Goodman.

Today more than ever with the growing anti-Semitism in this country we need to work together as a united community.  It is important that our individual groups flourish but the support we can offer each other through an organisation such as the ‘Rep Council ‘is invaluable.