Sarah is a founding member of the Interlink team. After an early teaching career in local Charedi (Orthodox Jewish) schools, and volunteering for special needs group activities and hospital visiting, she became a governor at Homerton Hospital for three terms and is currently a local school governor. She joined Interlink and has progressed through various roles for over 30 years.
Sarah supports organisations with policy customisation and is a lead role in safeguarding and other compliance work.
She is deeply connected with Public Health and facilitates a Maternity Services Strategy group which has been running since 2006. It brings together Charedi community and statutory providers and commissioners.
More recently, Sarah has overseen the formation of, and chairs, the Charedi Women’s Health Alliance, with core community and statutory participation. The aim is to improve health literacy and address health inequalities in the Charedi community.
As part of Interlink’s advocacy work in helping agencies understand how to engage the community and provide accessible services, Sarah delivers Cultural Awareness Training about the community.
Professional Experience, Highlights and Distinctions:
Understanding the Charedi Community’ is an interactive training based on frank, open dialogue with participants. Our training sessions are divided into generic and specific elements, giving participants a deeper understanding of the community and its norms, which empowers them to engage with the Charedi community with confidence and competence.
Course Content:
- Historical context
- Belief system and centrality of Torah
- Religious Practices
- The Jewish calendar and Sabbath
- Family life
- Social and cultural norms
- Kosher food
- Community infrastructure
- Socio economic profile including demographic information
- Challenges facing the community and barriers in accessing services
- Understanding the Orthodox Jewish Community also looks at strategies for building relationships with mainstream agencies