The Chief Rabbi and community leaders have spoken of their shock after the three days of rioting this week but praised community efforts to help rebuild the cities.

Lord Sacks said: "The riots have been a shocking reminder of how thin the surface of civilisation is, and how quickly, especially in the age of smartphones, individual criminality can become mob violence.

"We should not, though, forget the other face of Britain, the people who helped restore order, clean up the mess and come to the aid of victims of violence.

"In the fullness of time we will need to think deeply about what the riots are telling us about the moral state of a small but significant percentage of young people in Britain today."

Anglo-Jews are being urged to donate clothing and bedding to people made homeless in the riots.

Raymond Simonson, executive director of Limmud, said: "People live in flats above shops that have been set on fire, so their homes have been badly or permanently damaged. We found out Haringey Council needed bedding, clothes and toys. We asked people to give donations to the Limmud office and we drove a couple of car loads over."

RSY-Netzer have donated spare t-shirts and sweatshirts to the Limmud campaign.

Mr Simonson added: "We want to show people that London is not made up just of those who break things, but those who try and repair a damaged world – tikkun olam in a pure sense."