Prime Minister Theresa May has sent a short message of good wishes via social media to all those taking part in this weekend's Great Shabbat Switch Off for Shabbat UK.

Wishing #ShabbatUK Shalom to all taking part in @chiefrabbi's Great Shabbat Switch Off who are enjoying family & community time this weekend

— UK Prime Minister (@Number10gov) October 25, 2017

The Chief Rabbi said of the initiative: "Separation from mundane work and empty distraction is necessary to reinvigorate one’s soul; to find space for meaningful engagement with our friends and families in a noisy world of media and communications which constantly demand our attention.

“Shabbat bonds families together, it bonds communities together and it reminds us that we must have control over our environments and not the other way around.”

The JC has been supporting Shabbat UK with a number of initiatives, including the Feldman family's 'Digital Detox' in which a family of technology junkies agreed to spend 25 hours offline.