On September 7th and 8th, the Jewish community celebrated Rosh Hashanah, the ‘head of the year’. The Jewish Calendar marks the start of the year in Autumn, so it usually falls somewhere in September or October on the Gregorian calendar. It’s one of the most important Jewish holidays; a time for families and loved ones to reunite, eat and celebrate together. The food you eat on Rosh Hashanah is incredibly important, with everything having a symbolic meaning. Jewish families will have enjoyed treats like apples with honey for a good and sweet new year, round challah bread symbolising the cycle of the year, and pomegranates, traditionally said to contain 613 seeds representing the 613 commandments G-d gave to his chosen people.

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The nearly 300,000 Jewish people in the UK spend Rosh Hashanah with their families, feasting and sharing their wishes for the new year. Many attend special Synagogue services where the Shofar, a ram-horn trumpet, is sounded, which signifies the beginning of the 10 days leading up to Yom Kippur, commonly known as the days of awe or the days of repentance. People will also have been to Tashlich services where they throw breadcrumbs away into a naturally running body of water, symbolising casting away their sins.