Borehamwood and Elstree Synagogue members who attend its Southside minyan at Yavneh College are to be given a greater say in the shul’s governance.

A new BES management structure will see the current team of five honorary officers plus the senior rabbi augmented by two officers whose prime responsibility will be to represent the interests of the Southsiders.

The move follows a report from a Southside think tank which demonstrated that those attending the Yavneh minyan wanted a greater involvement in the wider BES family.

“This is now a super-shul and the challenge facing such a large community is to give every member a sense of belonging,” said BES chair Anne Gordon. “The new management structure is, we hope, the solution to this challenge, improving communications between the different wings.”

Around 200 people attend services at Yavneh each week. Of the shul’s total membership of more than 2,300 adults and around 1,350 children, 370 member families live closer to Yavneh than to the synagogue’s Croxdale Road home on the opposite side of the town.