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5^th September 2011 – Etz Chaim Jewish Primary School Opens!

Etz Chaim Jewish Primary School opened its doors for the first time this morning as over 50 three and four years old started term.  Situated in the heart of Mill Hill, Etz Chaim is one of the first wave of flagship ‘Government Free Schools’ opening this September.  The school will start in temporary accommodation for 12 months before transferring to a permanent site next summer.  Increasing by a class of 28 each year, at full capacity in 2017, Etz Chaim will have around 220 pupils.  Headteachers Mrs Mullish and Mrs Baron said that they were ‘delighted to be pioneering such an exciting project’ and promised that the children would receive ‘an outstanding education in an outstanding setting.” As a free school, Etz Chaim will enjoy the ability to set its own curriculum; manage its own budget and report directly to Central Government.

Set up by a group of parents and teachers in response to an overwhelming demand for extra school places in the area, Etz Chaim has a modern Orthodox Jewish ethos under the auspices of the Office of the Chief Rabbi.

Education Secretary, Michael Gove, said: "The most important thing for any parent is to be able to send their child to a good local school, with high standards and strong discipline. That is why we are opening Free Schools across the country.

Schools Minister Lord Hill added: "I am very pleased that Etz Chaim Jewish Primary School will open this September. The school will provide members of the community in Barnet with a school that responds to parental demand. “Free Schools will improve choice for parents and allow more children to have a first class education that's close to home.  “I wish Etz Chaim the best of luck and I look forward to watching it grow in the coming years."

Chair of Governors Adam Dawson confirmed that contracts had now concluded for the purchase of the schools permanent home with building works beginning in October.  The trust have a 102 years lease on the 2 acre Daws Lane plot. Mr Dawson said that he “was very pleased that site issues had now been resolved and that the Governors and Staff could focus on the essential business of providing  fantastic education, experiences and opportunities for local children.” Philippa Wolfin, Vice Chair added that a “series of events were being planned for the local community” and that she hoped in time, Etz Chaim would become a cornerstone of the Mill Hill community.”

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Etz Chaim Jewish Primary School is a modern orthodox Jewish, one form entry primary school in Mill Hill, London.

Etz Chaim means "Tree of Life" in Hebrew and symbolises new beginnings; moral, spiritual and physical growth through nurture.

The school is an academy and is one of the first ‘Free Schools’ to be established in the United Kingdom in 2011. The school has a Nursery and caters for children between the ages of 4-11 years old (Nursery to year 6 inclusive).

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Schools are the beating pulse of Jewish life. Other civilizations prided themselves on their castles and cathedrals. We cared less about buildings than about builders: Call them not (said the sages) ‘your children’ but ‘your builders’. Universal education – which Jews created eighteen centuries before Britain – was the first priority of any Jewish community. In the darkest days of persecution in Spain, Jews built schools. When the Thirty Years War that devastated Europe between 1618 and 1648 came to an end, the first thing Jews did was to reconstruct the educational system. When R. Samson Raphael Hirsch was appointed Rabbi in Frankfurt, his community wanted to build a new synagogue. First, he said, build a Jewish school. Only then may you build a synagogue.

Etz Chaim will address a need in the area for more Jewish primary school places.  From it you will see blessings for generations to come.

May the school have many successful years.

With blessings and all good wishes

Chief Rabbi Lord Sacks
January 2011/Shevat 5771