Our Values and Code of Conduct
Our Values
Chesed/Kindness – We will be ‘radically relational’ and build a community of kindness, care and friendship, showing up for each other’s joys and struggles, investing time in getting to know one another and looking after ourselves.
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Tzedek/Justice – We will act with courage, justice and compassion, working towards the creation of a more loving world; acting on the knowledge that our fate is connected with the fate of other communities, British society and the wider world.
Kavanah/Intentionality – We will create meaningful Jewish rituals; engaging intentionally and creatively with Torah & Jewish practice to inspire meaning and connection in our lives.
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Hineni: 'Here I am' / Leadership – We believe that every one of us, Jewish or Allies, whatever our backgrounds, strengths and relationships with Judaism, has something of value to offer, and the power to make change, and we will actively support the leadership and participation of all in our congregation.
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Torah/Wisdom – We are committed to learning and being in active conversation with ancient wisdom that holds, moves, informs and challenges us in the here and now.
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Code of Conduct
1) Dugmah Ishiet/the power of personal example – We will hold, and support, one all of us to consistently act on these values and code of conduct to embed them within Makor Hayim’s culture.
2) Best interests – We act in the best interests of Makor Hayim as a whole and our Builders/Members in particular, making an active effort to ensure that people are actively listened to and taken into account in respect of how we operate and communicate.
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3) Integrity – We uphold the highest levels of integrity and personal conduct in relation to each other, Makor Hayim, and ourselves. We will work to create systems to enable us to take decisions that are robust, responsible and free from conflicts of interest. We take responsibility to ensure our activities have a positive impact on our members, society and the natural world.
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4) Openness – We commit to being transparent, accountable and ensuring we communicate effectively with everyone who participates in our community and the wider public. We aim to be clear about what we do, how and why we do it. We will aim to be open about mistakes, so that we can learn from them. To this end, we will share our key policies and publish annual reports.
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5) The right to be safe and supported – We will aim to ensure that every person who is part of Makor Hayim, or comes into contact with our community, is treated with dignity and respect, and made to feel that they are in a safe and supportive environment. We will tackle any abuse of power or trust and stand firmly against bullying, intimidation or harassment, discrimination or victimisation in all we do. When there are conflicts, we will aim to resolve them in person, rather than by email. We will aim to ensure people get the training they need to do the roles they take on and encourage people to ask for help when needed.
6) Inclusion – We aim to build a radically welcoming and egalitarian community, where people of all ages, genders, sexual orientations, races, backgrounds, with and without disabilities, can feel there is a place for them as Builders of the community. We strive to ensure that both Jewish and non-Jewish Builders are treated with equal dignity and can develop their own unique relationship with and contribution to the community. Our goal is for Builders to own, participate in and lead the community, and to recognise and dismantle barriers to participation and leadership for everyone.