Everyone Belongs Here: Standing Together During Hanukkah and Beyond

15 December 2025

Hanukkah begins: the eight-day Jewish festival of lights

15 December 2025 to 23 December 2025

As part of NHS Shropshire, Telford and Wrekin’s ‘Everyone Belongs Here’ campaign, we reaffirm our commitment to fostering an inclusive, respectful and supportive environment for all communities across our health and care system.

At this special time of Hanukkah, we reflect on its enduring message of hope and light, recognising the importance of standing together against hate and supporting one another, regardless of background or belief.

Following the deadly attack at a Bondi Beach celebration of the start of Hanukkah this year, we remind ourselves here in Shropshire, Telford and Wrekin that the theme of Hanukkah is of bringing light into the darkness.

At this time of shock across the world, we join with Jewish colleagues and the wider Jewish community in the United Kingdom and across the world to mourn the loss of life, and to dedicate ourselves to the continued challenge of tackling antisemitism and all forms of religious hatred, remembering that the word ‘Hanukkah’ actually means ‘dedication’.

And we remind ourselves of the following messages from members of the South Shropshire Interfaith Forum and the Shrewsbury Interfaith Forum;

“People of faith should feel safe in their places of worship and in their observations and commemorations of their faiths. They should be able to go about their daily lives without the fear that others are defining them by their religion or by their colour, or by what they are wearing in accordance with their faith. As representatives of diverse religions, and as a local council representing our diverse communities, we now call upon people in Shropshire to stand with us in respect for the beliefs of others.

“We urge anyone witnessing or experiencing religious hatred, just as they would do in witnessing or experiencing racial hatred, to report this to the police immediately. We will ourselves continue to challenge misinformation, to foster good relations through our own example and that of others, and to celebrate the range of faiths in Shropshire and the contributions that everyone brings. Everyone belongs here.”