As Culture Secretary Andy Burnham launched a £1.5 million scheme to part-fund heritage officers for historic places of worship, a warning was sounded over the Jewish community’s failure to support its many heritage sites.

Dr Sharman Kadish, director of Jewish Heritage — working to preserve more than 40 protected Jewish sites across the UK — was among guests at the English Heritage event in Manchester at which Mr Burnham announced the initiative.

“Money has come from public sources, but it’s slightly embarrassing that there is not this mutual support from the Jewish community,” Dr Kadish observed. She welcomed the new scheme as “an important commitment of funding”.

Mr Burnham emphasised the importance of communities knowing about their heritage sites. “There is an education job to be done by each faith group. What we’re trying to do is to broaden our understanding of what might be done to help all communities and faith groups to look after churches, synagogues, mosques — everything.” He said he would be paying a visit to the decaying Higher Crumpsall Synagogue in North Manchester, which is Grade II listed.