15 September 2016

Trips of a lifetime made possible for those who deserve them

SUPPLEMENT

015
1 February 2
iday Fund,
ildrens Hol
h
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is
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J
Dear
that our
et you know
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share this
he got back
else since
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and he has
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nerous gra
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been for yo
Trust who
tee of this
it
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om
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esult, so w
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a
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in your Com
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on
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r
ve
and e
rely,
Yours since

17.8.16

Dear JCHF,
My husband and I are not
sure who we need to
personally thank,, but we
just wanted to write to
express our deepest and he
artfelt appreciation for th
e
grant we received for our
girls summer camps this
year. Tomorrow is their las
t day and they have had an
absolutely incredible time, som
ething that would not have
been possible without the
financial support that was
given.
Please, if you could pass on
our sincere hakaras hatov to
the relevant people, we w
ould be most grateful.
A personal thank you to you
too for orchestrating it all.
Yours faithfully,
Mrs

Samuel
Registered Charity No.295361

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JCHF2 The Jewish News 15 September 2016 

www.jewishnews.co.uk

JN JEWISH CHILDRENS HOLIDAY FUND

CREATING
SPECIAL
MEMORIES FOR
EVERY CHILD
The letters on the previous page delight JCHF
chairman Ian Donoff, but it is the mail asking
for help that moves him the most

5th June 20

13

To JCHF,

We would so

send our tw

Reform Sy

much appre

o children to

nagogue. O

ciate a holid

a day camp

ur expendit

ay grant to

run by our

ure exceeds
the
n produce b
y working
and receivin
g benefits.
The children
are both
under eight
and they w
ould like to
go to a cam
with their fr
p
iends. Is th
ere any cha
n
ce
of help
towards this
cost?
amount of

Thanking

JM

money we ca

you in adv

ance,

8March 2013
ry,
Dear Secreta

her
to have a kos
ys
o
b
r
u
fo
r
able to
We wish ou
p. I am not
am
c
at
ay
aw
full
holiday
ility. I am in
ab
s
di
a
e
av
h
sability
work as I
and have a di
ts
efi
en
b
f
o
e camp
receipt
not afford th
an
c
I
t
u
b
pset
allowance,
boys. I am u
r
u
fo
l
al
r
fees fo
suffers from
ys
o
b
y
m
f
o
particular,
because one
I feel he, in
d
an

em
te
ith his
low es
being away w
m
o
fr
t
efi
help
would ben
re you able to
A
.
p
am
c
at
friends
please?
Kind regards,

Laura

or more than 100 years,

the Jewish Childrens
Holiday
Fund
has
provided holidays for any
children aged five to 11 who
would otherwise not have
had one, including those with
learning disabilities.
Dedicated to providing the
opportunity for all Jewish children
to have the chance of a summer
break, whatever their personal or
family circumstances, the mission is to help
needy and underprivileged Jewish children
have a holiday each summer. It is often the
case that those children who would most

benefit from having a holiday or respite break

are those whose family circumstances mean

that they cannot afford one.

When the JCHF started in 1888, the Jewish

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community was mainly based

in Londons East End. Many
immigrants rented rooms
and terraced houses near to
the Docks. They existed on
trades known to them from the
haim. The accommodation
was
cramped
and
the
children lived in a polluted
and crowded environment.
To many a Jewish child, two
weeks away by the coast was a
dream and through the already established
National Childrens Holidays Fund, JCHF
became the Jewish branch and was able
to let those dreams become reality.

www.jewishnews.co.uk

15 September 2016 The Jewish News JCHF3

Former chairman Frank Austin

From that time, JCHF paid for the

accommodation of board and lodging
for Jewish children to stay with families
by the seaside, where they were exposed
to fresh air, exercise and an unpolluted and
non-crowded environment.
After the Second World War, we began
to use accommodation at Seaford, which
was then owned by Jewish Care and had a
number of fortnights booked for the children
during the summer. In the early 1960s,
under the chairmanship of Frank Austin (of
Austinsuite fame) the committee learnt that a
furniture trade convalescent home in Seaford
was for sale. The charity bought the property
and it was named after a major donor and
benefactor member of the committee, Lord
Whiteley.
Whiteley House in Seaford, with its land,
including a football pitch and adjacent
cottage, became the two-week summer
home for many. The children were entertained
and thoroughly exhausted, but in the best
possible way, by all the activities arranged
by the supervisors and leaders of each of the
three camps per summer. Some 150 children

between the ages of five and 11 came to our

camp, which boasted two kitchens producing
three kosher meals each day, prepared by
professional paid chefs. For many, it was a
revelation of freedom and organised activity
from 7.30am to bedtime. With games, both
indoor and outdoor, and day trips, as well as
the advantages of being only a short walk to
the sea, the children had a great time and
remember fondly their time at Whiteley
House or Seaford.
The writer recalls that two years ago, he
was asked by St. Albans Radio to talk about
the camp and Seaford in its Jewish Hour on a
Sunday afternoon and to take phone calls on
air. It was amazing that as soon as the phone
lines were opened, an elderly gentleman
rang in to recall his great time at Seaford
and to say that he would never forget it. He
even described all the activities in which he
had participated! What an advertisement
for us. Our leaders and helpers also tell us
what fond memories they have of Whiteley
House and the children.
Whiteley House was a large old Victorian
house which, although well maintained, was
soon to become a very heavy financial burden
on the charity. JCHF obtained planning
permission for 39 housing units on the site
and it was purchased by a developer.
Some years earlier, we had already
increased our grant aiding to other Jewish
camps such as Bnei Akiva, Habonim, Hanoar
Hatzioni and Lubavitch, among others. We
then opened up to requests from individuals
whose circumstances showed they needed
help in sending their children to the many
types of Jewish summer camps, whether
sleepover or day camps located in a
synagogue or a school.
We expanded our grant-giving activities to
such an extent that it meant children could
go with their friends to the same camp.

Meanwhile, we continued to
arrange our own camps by hiring
schools in the country and then
by using Skeet House, a newly
refurbished premises in Kent.
At this time, we were only doing
one two-week camp and there
was less demand owing to the
success of our grant system.
This year, for the first time since
the sale of Seaford, we have not
run our own camp. Instead, we
have been able to help more than
1,000 children attend a day or
residential holiday or an organised
family holiday scheme.
This is the largest number of
children we have been able to assist
in one year and it is a good feeling.
But to continue with this level of
grants, we need the communitys
support.

Old times at Whiteley House in Seaford

JEWISH CHILDRENS
HOLIDAY FUND TIMELINE
1888

Charity
established for
East End children

1888-1945 1946-1960 1960

As part of
Childrens
Country Holiday
Fund, the Jewish
Branch, poor
children from
the East End of
London were
sent to homes
near the seaside
for two weeks at
our cost

Utilising the
smaller premises
in Seaford,
owned by the
Jewish Welfare
Board (now part
of Jewish Care),
we were able to
create a camp
where there
was separate
accommodation
for boys and
girls within a few
minutes walk
from each other

 PPLICATIONS: 020 8440 4656

A
ENQUIRIES: 020 7100 5097

secretary@jchf.org

Frank Austin, the

then chairman,
negotiated with
the Furniture
Trade Association
to purchase
their redundant
convalescent
home in Seaford
with the adjoining
grounds.
Made possible by
Maude Whiteley,
new meat and
milky kitchens and
bedroom facilities
on three floors for
both childrens
dormitories and
for leaders and
supervisors were
introduced

1988

Princess
Alexandra came
to our centenary
celebrations

1995

With the benefit

of a grant from
the Childrens
Aid Committee,
a new games
room extension
was introduced
and used both
for indoor
activities and
evening plays
and recreation

2004

Whiteley
House sold
after achieving
planning
permission for
development

2005-2010 2010-2015 2016

Various country
sites were
used for the
continuation of
our own camp,
but at the same
time, increased
subsidies for
grant applicants

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Skeet Hill House

was used after it
was refurbished
for our own
summer camp.
Fewer
applications
coincided with
a substantial
increase in
requests for
grants by
individuals and
other camp
organisations

Largest
grant-giving
organisation for
Jewish children to
attend a camp.w
Organisation
needed change
as success
meant many
children could
go with friends
to an ordinary
Jewish camp
run by others.
Application
forms introduced
for all to
complete, both
for individuals
needing subsidies
and for camps
needing funding

2017

Parents should
apply early in
the year for
forms, which can
be posted or
emailed to them

JCHF4 The Jewish News 15 September 2016 

www.jewishnews.co.uk

JN JEWISH CHILDRENS HOLIDAY FUND

HOW YOU CAN HELP

A holiday can benefit the family just as much as it benefits the child.
This year, JCHF was pleased to be able to provide even more funding for
children with disabilities, to give them a holiday and their family a break

etters of the kind you have read on

these pages are received by the
JCHF between February and July
each year. The charity receives hundreds
of applications, both directly and through
agencies such as Norwood and others
from the provincial Jewish communities. If
the application is for specific attendance
at a summer camp specialising in Jewish
disabled children, this may involve cost of
the additional help for special carers.
We do our best to help all, whatever the
applicants Jewish affiliation. Camp organisers
who know us also ask for grants towards the
subsidies they make; we try and help them
each year with a direct grant.
But our funds are limited, which is why we
are asking for your support as, very often, we
have used up our allowance for the current
year and cannot give a grant, or have to
reduce our direct grants to camps where
there are late applications. By sending a
donation or by donating online, your gift will
help us with our task.
JCHF, with its team of volunteers, has been
helping children have holidays for more than
128 years.
At the start, in 1888, it was a fund to pay
for poor children of the East End to travel
to the coast for a few weeks in the summer.
With fresh air and sea breezes, the children
blossomed and gained great benefit.
Nothing has really changed since then.
These days, we receive letters from all over
London and the provinces (e.g. Manchester
and Leeds) and the Jewish social welfare
organisations know to call on us as a case
arises. With the increase in single parent
families in the Jewish community, mainly
caused by the increase in divorce, there is an

even greater call on our resources.

In 2016, we helped more than 1,000 children
attend a day or residential camp. With your
help, we hope to assist even more children
next year!
What do you do if you are a parent
needing some financial help to send your
child to one of the many Jewish schemes in
the UK next year?
Please apply to us for an application form.
Once completed, this will provide us with
information about your income (including
any state benefits) and the assistance
you need, and gives us a synopsis of your
circumstances. You can include any other
relevant information.
ALL information that you provide is
treated in the strictest confidence and
remains completely confidential. All grants
are considered by a handful of the voluntary
members of our committee.
If you are a social welfare organisation or
a camp organisation, knowing you are going
to receive a large number of requests for
subsidies, please contact us as soon as you
can. We will ask you for limited information
and, in many circumstances, we will grant your
organisation a lump sum for you to disburse.
Full information is given on this page for
you to send a donation.
A form is attached to cut out and send with
your cheque or charity cheque
A Gift Aid form is included so that your
donation increases by the standard rate
of income tax (higher rate taxpayers
also receive additional tax relief via their
personal tax return)
 PPLICATIONS: 020 8440 4656
A
ENQUIRIES: 020 7100 5097

secretary@jchf.org

DONATION FORM

Please make all cheques payable to JCHF

Title Name (Block capitals please)

Adress

Postcode
Telephone
Email
Why not increase the effectiveness of your donation? Your completing
the following will enable us to reap the benefits of the new Gift Aid for
any amount donated.
I the person named above, wish to treat all donations to Jewish Childrens Holidays Fund that I have made since 6th April 2000 and all future
donations I will make from the date of this Declaration as Gift Aid donations, until I notify you otherwise.

/
Signed

Dated

Please return this form with your gift to:

Freepost RSUX-BKUB-TTAA
JCHF
PO Box 1206
Enfield EN1 9SH
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Registered Charity No.295361