Heritage Open Days · September Tour.

About this opening.

For two days each September, as part of England's national Heritage Open Days programme, the Plymouth Hebrew Congregation opens the synagogue to the public. Visitors are welcome to walk through the prayer hall, sit on the polished oak benches, look up at the women's gallery, and (with cotton gloves) handle a small selection of items from the heritage collection. Two short guided tours are offered each day. Wardens are on hand to answer questions throughout the day.

This is one of the two occasions a year, alongside the spring open weekend, on which non-members are encouraged to come inside the building. It is a quiet event. The crowd, even at its busiest, rarely tops sixty people in the room. We make a pot of tea around 13.00 in the small kitchen at the back. The biscuits are usually shortbread, brought by Margaret Stein.

Full description.

The building you will visit was consecrated on 26 August 1762 and has been in continuous use as a synagogue since that date. It is listed at Grade II*. Its interior is, to a remarkable extent, the interior the congregation built in 1762 — the same bimah, the same Aron Kodesh, the same polished oak benches. There are a handful of later additions: a small Edwardian extension at the rear, the iron railings on the street (1874), and a section of the women's gallery floor that was consolidated in 1979 with the help of a grant from BASH TRUST.

Two short guided tours will be offered each day, at 11.00 and at 14.00. Each tour lasts approximately thirty-five minutes and is led by a member of the congregation. We ask that you register in advance for the tours, by writing to [email protected], simply so we know how many to expect. The rest of the day is drop-in.

What to bring.

• Comfortable walking shoes — the floor is uneven in places.
• A warm layer if you tend to feel the cold — the building is unheated except by a small portable heater near the door.
• Curiosity and a few questions.
• Donations are welcome at the small wooden alms box by the entrance. None is expected.

You do not need to be Jewish to attend. You do not need to know anything in particular about the building. Men are asked, by convention, to wear a head covering inside the prayer hall; kippot are provided in a small basket by the door.

Accessibility.

Step-free access is available through the side door on Catherine Street, via a small ramp installed in 2017 and refurbished in 2019. The accessible ramp is signed from the main entrance. Inside, the prayer hall is on the ground floor and is fully wheelchair accessible. The women's gallery and the upstairs archive room are reached by a steep, narrow staircase and are not accessible to wheelchair users; we are exploring options for this in the long term but it is a listed building and any intervention is carefully constrained.

There is one accessible toilet in the ancillary building behind the synagogue. There is a small loop system at the bimah. A large-print version of the visitor handout is available at the door. Guide dogs are welcome throughout. If you have an access requirement we have not anticipated, please write to us in advance and we will do our best.

Getting here.

Catherine Street is a short walk from Plymouth City Centre (about five minutes from the Theatre Royal). There is paid on-street parking on adjacent streets and a multi-storey car park at the Pavilions, ten minutes' walk away. The nearest railway station is Plymouth, twenty minutes' walk or a short bus ride from the building.

Register your interest (optional).

If you would like to join one of the guided tours, or if you simply want us to know you are coming so we can put aside enough shortbread, please complete the short form below. There is no charge.