WHEN Prince Edward visited Bradford Synagogue this year, the neighbouring Central Mosque opened up its car park to guests, and chauffeured them to the service.

It was a gesture that highlighted the bond between the two faith organisations, which have worked closely over recent years. The synagogue, which has stood in Manningham since 1882, is the only one in the world with a Muslim on its committee. The multi-faith work was praised by Prince Edward, the Earl of Wessex, at the Synagogue service attended by Muslim, Sikh and Christian representatives. It was the first Royal visit to a synagogue in the North of England.

Watching Prince Edward unveiling a plaque commemorating his visit was a proud moment for Richard Stroud, whose great grandfather Joseph Strauss was the founding rabbi of Bradford Synagogue. Six generations of his family were at the service. It was a memorable day too for synagogue chairman Rudi Leavor, who said: “A few years ago we thought we might have to sell this building.”

For Jani Rashid, appointed to Bradford Synagogue Council in 2015, the Royal visit celebrated an extraordinary partnership that made global headlines. “This special day recognises the inter-faith relationships developed here,” he said. “The Jewish community has an important heritage in Bradford, especially in industry. A lot of the mills were run by Jewish people, and a lot of Muslims worked in them. Now Bradford’s Jewish community is a small and ageing one, and we are a large community, and supporting each other can only be a positive thing.”

The Grade II listed synagogue, the oldest one in Yorkshire and a striking example of Moorish Victorian architecture, is interwound with the history of Bradford’s Jewish population. But in 2013, with the community dwindling, it faced an uncertain future. It was largely down to Bradford Council for Mosques, and local businesses, that the synagogue was saved. “We are working hard to support one another as good neighbours,” said Council for Mosques chairman Zulfi Karim at the time.

The bond began when Zulficar Ali, owner of the Sweet Centre on nearby Lumb Lane, joined Mr Leavor in opposing plans for a restaurant near the synagogue. “He’d walked past it thousands of times and didn’t know it was a synagogue. We talked about the building, which desperately needed funds to keep open,” said Mr Leavor. Mr Ali helped to secure a £500 donation from Carlisle Business Centre and a small committee of Muslim business and community leaders was formed to raise further funds. This led to the synagogue receiving nearly £15,000 from the Heritage Lottery Fund for urgent repairs, and it was added to the national Heritage at Risk register. The appointment of Mr Rashid, a longterm supporter, marked another chapter in the special partnership “The local Muslim community has been unfailing in the fight to keep the synagogue open and flourishing. We thought it time that was represented on our council,” said Mr Leavor. “I have known Jani many years, within 10 seconds of me asking he said ‘yes’.”

But with the city’s Jewish population below 50, what now for the synagogue? “Its future is still in doubt,” said Richard Stroud. “It doesn’t have many members, if it’s to survive it needs to build on the inter-faith support work done so far. The Press thrives on extremism, on things that divide communities. But Bradford was built by people who came here from different parts of the world. We are united by similar views, not divided.”

Members hope to see the building used as a community or inter-faith centre - or, like Bradford’s German church, an arts hub. But Mr Leavor is aware that with him and other members now in their nineties, the building needs people to run it. “It needs someone to unlock the doors, put the heating on, put tables and chairs out,” he said.

“It would require some kind of grant, initially,” added Nigel Grizzard, who leads the Bradford Jewish Heritage Trail. The guided walk highlights significant times when the synagogue was packed, leaving standing room only - the late 19th century when German Jewish wool merchants settled here and expanded Bradford’s textile industry, and the influx of Jewish people fleeing Nazi Europe in the 1930s.

Over the years Jewish industrialists have demonstrated great philanthropy; helping to establish such institutions as Bradford’s Technical College, Eye and Ear Hospital and Children’s Hospital, Royal Infirmary and Grammar School, as well as splendid Victorian buildings such as City Hall, the Wool Exchange - and the Manningham synagogue.

Bradford’s Jewish forefathers left a great legacy in the city. Now the future of their synagogue relies on the continued support of neighbouring communities.