Wednesday 15 Teves – THIRD PRIVATE SCHOOL ANNOUNCES CLOSURE THIS WEEK AS LABOURS VAT RAID BITES – Couple, out for walk after overnight sirens, find chunk of Houthi missile on their roof – Videos and more…

Dear Cousin/ Neighbour/ Close Friend/ Shul Member

I am writing this letter to address an issue that I believe impacts not just me, but many business owners in our community.

As you know, our community is built on shared values of kindness, chessed, and mutual support. Yet, I’ve noticed that some of us are quick to seek assistance from one another when it’s needed—whether for tzedakah organisations, making a chasunah, personal assistance or other causes—but are not equally mindful when it comes to supporting each other’s businesses.

It’s disheartening when friends, neighbours, or even members of the same shul never step foot into a local store/a business run by someone close, a relative, or who is part of their community or shul.

How can we claim to be a supportive community if we don’t practice that support in the most practical way?

I understand that everyone has preferences and needs, and you won’t always find everything you’re looking for in every shop, be it in style or price, but how can you know if you haven’t even given it a chance? You have never even tried!
Before you decide to shop elsewhere or use someone else’s service and turn to competitors, consider visiting/supporting a business owned by someone in your family or shul or close friends circle.

It isn’t just the financial support, it is about the moral support too.

By supporting your friend, cousin or neighbour, you’re not just helping a storeowner—you’re helping their family, investing in your own community, and ensuring that we can all thrive together and help each other. And remember, the same people you overlook today are often the ones who donate generously when you come knocking for help with your chasunah or tzedakah fund or other requests for help.

Your support of local businesses is an investment in the collective success of everyone around us.

This letter is not meant to criticize but to raise awareness.

Awareness, because at times, I have to believe that your behaviour seems so inconsiderate simply because you may be unaware of how it affects those who are working hard to build their businesses.

Please, think about where your money is going. If you can support a friend, a family member, or a neighbour by shopping locally, why wouldn’t you?

Let’s build a community where our first instinct is to uplift one another.

I, as a business owner, find it hurtful to see you support other businesses before you have even tried to approach me – I may be your cousin, your aunt, your next door neighbour, or maybe I stand next to you in shul, yet you have never stepped foot into my store/business.

You come to me for recipes, advice, financial assistance, car rides or babysitting. You reach out for my maaser money when you need it, yet I see you standing there waving a bag from a shop that sells the same things I do, without any consideration for how it makes me feel.

As I walk past your house, I often see empty boxes from your grocery or other shopping purchases in your front garden. It makes me wonder—why don’t you consider shopping at my store instead?

Am I only good enough for you when you need favours from me?

Thank you for taking the time to reflect on this. Together, we can make our community even stronger.

Sincerely,
A local business owner who is trying to raise awareness in our amazing community.

Labour’s controversial VAT raid on private school fees has claimed another victim, with Godolphin Prep in Salisbury announcing its closure at the end of the school year.
The school becomes the third private school in a single week to announce it will close its doors, following announcements by Maidwell Hall in Northamptonshire and Amherst School in Loughborough.
Parents were informed on Wednesday that Godolphin Prep, which charges £12,196 a year for girls aged 3 to 11, could no longer sustain operations due to declining pupil numbers and mounting financial pressures caused by Labour’s tax hike.

The Telegraph reported a letter to parents read: “The future for stand-alone prep schools is particularly precarious at present; not only due to the introduction of VAT on fees but also in terms of ensuring we remain at the cutting edge.”

CRISIS ACROSS THE COUNTRY
The closures come just weeks after Labour introduced the 20% VAT charge on private school fees on January 1. From April, private schools will also face new business rates, adding even more financial strain.

The Independent Schools Council (ISC), representing 1,400 member schools, has warned that more closures are inevitable, disrupting education for pupils and causing job losses for dedicated teaching staff.

As reported in the Telegraph, Julie Robinson, ISC chief executive, said: “Many people warned the Government that VAT would prove a bridge too far for schools already under financial pressure – we are now seeing the reality: school closures, dedicated staff losing their jobs and children having their education disrupted.

Ms Robinson added: “This is something that we will unfortunately see again over the coming months and years – with more communities losing an employer, a partner and an educational hub for local children. We urge the Government to think again and work with us to mitigate the effects of this damaging policy.”

DEVASTATING IMPACT ON SCHOOLS AND COMMUNITIES
Maidwell Hall, a 114-year-old boarding school once attended by Earl Spencer, and Amherst School are among the latest casualties of Labour’s policy.

A report from the Good Schools Guide warns: “If this can happen to Maidwell, it can certainly happen to other small, country prep schools with boarding.”

State schools may also feel the strain as parents forced out of private education turn to an already overstretched public sector.

BURDEN ON PARENTS AND TEACHERS
Independent School Bursars Association chief executive David Woodgate cautioned that some schools might need to sell off land to balance their books. Meanwhile, other schools are already cutting bursaries for disadvantaged pupils.

Parents and teachers are raising the alarm about the broader consequences of Labour’s tax raid. One parent said: “This politics of envy from Labour doesn’t just upset private schools—it’s about the wider education system. Overcrowded state schools will bear the brunt. What sort of civilised society taxes education? Labour’s policies are a disaster and we are seeing it across the board.”

LABOUR’S DEFENCE VS GROWING CRITICISM
The Treasury claims the VAT policy will raise £1.8bn annually to support state education. A spokesperson said: “Ending tax breaks for private schools will help the 94% of children in state schools achieve and thrive.”

However, Neil O’Brien, Conservative shadow education minister, hit back, accusing Labour of an “education tax” that hurts teachers, pupils, and families across the board.

“Labour’s policy is hammering independent schools while state schools face chaos,” he said. “This isn’t just bad policy—it’s an attack on choice, opportunity, and quality in education.”

MORE TO COME?
With private schools reeling from the financial blow and more closures expected, Labour’s tax raid is quickly becoming a major flashpoint in the education debate. Critics argue the policy is short-sighted, putting teachers’ jobs, children’s education, and community institutions at risk.

The question remains: How many more schools will be forced to close before Labour rethinks its damaging education tax?

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Millions of people across Southern California faced new wildfire warnings Tuesday, and tens of thousands saw their power shut off as strong winds blew across the parched landscape around Los Angeles where two massive blazes have been burning for a week.

Santa Ana winds that began gusting over the mountains before sunrise were forecast to continue with enough force to carry fire-sparking embers for miles and stoke new outbreaks across a region where at least 24 people have already been killed.

“Life threatening and destructive and widespread winds are already here,” LA city Fire Chief Kristin Crowley told a news conference.

Much of Southern California was under an elevated fire risk, with crews on high alert across a 300-mile stretch from San Diego to far north of Los Angeles. Facing the greatest risk were inland areas north of LA, including densely populated Thousand Oaks, Northridge and Simi Valley, home to more than 300,000 people, forecasters said.

Nearly 90,000 households lost electricity as utilities shut off power to prevent their lines from sparking new blazes.

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Israel and Hamas agreed in principle to a hostage deal on Monday night and have since been working in Doha to finalize the details regarding implementation of the agreement.

One of the main issues that has yet to be finalized is the exact parameters of the IDF’s withdrawal from Gaza, and the mediators are still waiting for a map from Israel laying this out, Arab officials say.

The two officials speculate that a deal will be announced on Wednesday or Thursday in the form of a joint statement from the US, Qatar and Egypt, who have been mediating between Israel and Hamas.

Earlier Tuesday, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken claimed that Israel had accepted the hostage deal, while Hamas had yet to do the same.

On Monday, two officials familiar with the matter told The Times of Israel that US President-elect Donald Trump’s Mideast envoy Steve Witkoff held a “tense” meeting with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Jerusalem on Saturday during which he leaned on the premier to make the compromises necessary to secure an agreement.

One of the Arab officials speaking to The Times of Israel on Tuesday says Witkoff managed to move Netanyahu more in that one meeting than the Biden administration had in countless conversations over the past year.

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A couple who went out for a morning stroll Tuesday was surprised to discover that a large section of a ballistic missile had smashed through the roof of their home, narrowly missing them.

The missile was fired at Israel overnight by Yemen’s Houthi rebels and intercepted by the Israel Defense Forces.

However, debris after the interception landed in Mevo Beitar, a community on the outskirts of Jerusalem, with a large piece hitting the home of Zvika and Michal Wexler, the Ynet outlet reported.

Michal explained that like millions of other Israelis, the family was woken during the night by sirens that alerted them of the missile attack. They quickly sought refuge in their safe room, a thick-walled area built into newer Israeli homes.

Michal said the family did not hear any unusual noise. Loud booms from an interception are often heard by residents on the ground, even inside sealed safe rooms.

“We went out in the morning as usual for a walk and we saw some debris damage” on the ground, Michal said. “Only when we looked up did we see the rocket on the roof of our house.”

Zvika said the rocket section, four meters (13 feet) in length, pierced the roof but landed on top of the safe room below.

“If it had fallen on another part of the roof I don’t know how things would have ended,” he said.

According to Michal, a helpful former local security official identified the debris as a rocket section.

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