Manchester Jewish Museum

My visit to the Manchester Jewish Museum was a memorable experience. From the moment I arrived, the staff stood out as exceptionally welcoming, knowledgeable, and passionate about the history they share. They offered a detailed introduction to the Jewish community in Manchester, explaining how it developed over time and the role it played in shaping the surrounding areas. Their insight added so much depth and context to everything on display. One of the highlights was the guided tour of the beautifully maintained former Sephardi synagogue. It’s a stunning space, rich in colour, craftsmanship and the guide explained various Jewish customs, traditions, and practices in a way that was engaging, respectful, and accessible to all visitors, regardless of prior knowledge. Jewish or not, you are made to feel very welcome. Standing inside such a thoughtfully preserved building really brings history to life. The newer museum building, although compact, is cleverly designed and filled with interesting artefacts, personal stories, and interactive elements that help bridge the past with the present. It complements the synagogue perfectly, offering a rounded and meaningful look at Jewish heritage in Manchester. Overall, it’s a wonderfully curated museum with excellent staff and a warm, welcoming environment. A must-visit for anyone interested in culture, history, or community stories.

Visiting the Jewish Museum has been my personal highlight of Manchester. The welcome was very friendly. I started at the lovely cafe with a tasty soup served with flatbread and a lemonade. Then I went upstairs to the museum. I was especially touched by many testimonies of Jewish girls who immigrated to Manchester because of Nazism in Austria, where I come from. A volunteer offered me his help and I could ask many questions about the history and the current situation of Jewish people in Manchester. Afterwards I visited the former synagogue which was something special to me. It is Sephardi and absolutely remarkable. The nice volunteer was very patient and took his time and I really learnt a lot of the Jewish way of prayer and service.

Amazing experience with many stories about the Manchester Jews. It is a museum built adjacent to a Sephardic Jewish Synagogue, which has one of the most unique synagogue designs. The museum side has a large collection, which details many things on the evolution of Manchester Jewry. Fascinating and some sad stories! Also, has a very nice cafe at the entrance. I had a nice pomegranate/cranberry drink.

Really fascinating first visit to Manchester Jewish Museum. We attended a free presentation on Jewish genealogy which helped and encouraged us a great deal. Had some delicious and refreshing drinks in the very smart and stylish cafe. The food here also sounds very interesting and I see they have won awards in the past for the cafe here. Everyone was very welcoming and friendly and the museum and synagogue was really interesting and moving to experience. Especially loved the stained glass in the synagogue and to be able to see the scrolls in the ark was a great honour. There are headphones in the museum with accounts of oral history from local Jewish families who grew up in the area and also accounts from members of the synagogue. It was very moving to me and was an emotional experience to share such a rich and important faith and culture especially now that we are living in such sad and uncertain times. Shalom!

Unexpected visit on a cloudy Sunday morning. We went on a long distance walk and stopped by the beautiful building of former synagogue to take pictures of it when all of a sudden, a lady working there opened the doors for us. It wasn't in our plan to spend more than 5 minutes because we were short of the time, but we, somehow, managed to spend nearly hour inside of a museum. Manchester Jewish Museum is a great place to learn about the thriving Jewish community in or around Manchester. Many pictures and interactive features tell you sad stories from history and provide you informations about their current situation. You can enter praying room, which is not in use anymore. You can still enjoy all original features and beautiful, nearly 200 years old, building. At the end of your visit you can also refresh yourself with drinks or small sweets. I wish it would be possible to try more traditional Jewish sweets or different meals, but I was happy enough with what I received. Museum also host different concerts or workshops, so there is much to do throughout the year. I said year, because entrance ticket for 8£ (10£ with aid) is valid for a year! Thanks for the great experience, I will be back soon!

The most wonderful experience! Sadly and understandably with the recent tragedy on yom kippur, the museum only seemed to have us in it for a while...however upon entering we were immediately welcomed, bag searched with compassion (totally fine with that🙏) All the staff were so kind and helpful it was so refreshing, as I unfortunately don't get quite as many experiences like this. We got a wonderful lady guide Diane (i think)..has been there for 12 years but explained everything like it was the first time with passion interest and knowledge. Another big thank you to her. The museum is beautifully laid out and I lost connection to my roots so wanted to reconnect for various reasons. The synagogue is breathtaking and again was explained in great detail. It was so lovely to revisit something I recognised from years ago. My first visit was when I was 13, a school trip. All in all, highly fascinating, spiritual and steeped in history bittersweet. The cafe looked lovely and clean, quite rustic and smelled great, unfortunately we didn't have time but I will be back. Highly recommend if you want a truthful insightful account of Judaism and its roots in Manchester. Fascinating stuff and made me more determined to delve back into my 'lost' culture. Thank you so much xxx

A fantastic museum experience that tells the story of Manchester's Jewish community through the generations. The staff are warm and welcoming. The volunteers are super friendly and knowledgeable and are happy to answer any questions or just have a chat! The historic synagogue attached to the museum is fabulous and well worth a visit.

Brilliant museum. My friend and I greatly enjoyed hearing recordings of people telling their stories. The cafe is lovely and we both had delicious bagels (would definitely recommend the vegan salmon and cream cheese bagel). We plan to come again as there is lots more to see! Your ticket grants entry for one year, so well worth the price. We visited the Oxfam Superstore beforehand, and together they make a lovely afternoon out.

The museum has won a Royal Institute of British Architecture National Award. Also, the museum opened a time capsule dating back nearly 150 years which was discovered during the construction work in 2020. The items found in the (large/sealed) glass jar will be used in programs next year celebrating the building's 150th birthday. Meanwhile, the expansion of the building doubled the museum's size with a modern new wing; it added galleries and a new core exhibit plus a vegetarian cafe and an enlarged gift shop.

This place is an absolute gem. A former synagogue, now serving as a museum about Jewish faith and the community in the Manchester area. The £4.50 entry price gets you in and includes the tours which run every hour - they offer two tours, one on religion and one on history, and they alternate from hour to hour. The place is fairly small, so it's worth going on the tours because you'll be running into the tour guides as you explore anyway and our guide (Mrs Kay) was really friendly and knowledgable. The interior retains its layout as a synagogue with various exhibits upstairs and downstairs and a small exhibition space at the rear. For me, the absolute star was a Torah scroll from what is now the Czech Republic; approximately 300 years old it was confiscated by the Nazis and subsequently recovered and is now on display here in Manchester.

I came to the Manchester Jewish Museum back when I was in Cheder (Jewish Sunday School). Its open on Sunday afternoons, most of the day on Mondays to Thursdays and by appointment on Fridays. Its closed on Saturdays, obviously, the Jewish day of rest. Its only £2.95 for students/ concessions and £3.95 for proper adults so its definitely a cheap day out. The Grade II building, a former Spanish and Portuguese synagogue on Cheetham Hill Road, is an apt setting for Jewish history as it is the oldest surviving synagogue in Manchester. The Victorian stained glass is pretty special and architecture students would have plenty to study here. The permanent collection includes many photographs documenting the history of Jews in the city and also a midwife's list of births which has produced a database for births between the first world war and the mid-1930s. The museum also runs Heritage Trails around this Jewish Quarter of Cheetham Hill (well, what used to be). You have to fork out a bit more but for a couple of hours the tour guides will bring to life this area's Jewish communities from the past. They also have a fantastic Jewish Experience which gives a taster of what it is to be Jewish including popular Seder demonstrations (I'm not surprised that these are popular - food, yummy potato latkes and some good songs, what more could you want.) Try this out, it'll be eye opening to many I'm sure.

Back in the days when we were students with too much time on our hands, the boyf and I decided to set our Friday afternoon aside each week to explore Great Manchester. After Stockport Hat Museum, Bury Market, a walk down the canal to Altrincham and several inner city wanders, we were really scraping the bottom of the barrel. So, after a quick search on the Internet we walked northwards through Cheetham Hill to the Jewish Museum. Unfortunately we didn't check the opening times, and as it was a Friday, the museum was closed. Schoolboy error. There are also certain dates on which the museum is closed - see website for details. However, from the outside the building was beautiful, despite being in a slightly insalubrious area. It is the oldest synagogue in Manchester, built in 1874 in a Moorish style. The Museum chronicles the lives of Jewish people in Manchester and their contribution to making the city what it is today. They also offer guided tours and have a small shop. The museum can be hired for weddings and civil ceremonies. I'll be back. Just not on a Friday. Or Saturday.

At under a fiver to get in i would recommend a visit to this place.It is only about a mile from the centre on Manchester so is well worth a visit .This museum looks at the lifes of Manchester jewry and the people associated with it.Group tours are available here.