Benjamin Eliezer Perl

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Benjamin Perl appears on Newsnight to discuss faith schools, 12 November 2009.[1]

Born in 'Israel', Benjamin Perl has lived in London for over 40 years. His business Sixtrees Ltd is headquartered in Huntingdon, Cambs, 'where he became a close personal friend of former Prime Minister Sir John Major. That friendship was instrumental in enabling Mr Perl to launch his “Towards 20 Schools” initiative in 1991. Since then, Mr Perl has more than reached his goal, establishing Jewish schools in London and beyond.'[2]

Activities

Pillar Hotel

Katie Hopkins meeting

“I don’t feel the time is far away… What will you say to your children when they look at you and ask: ‘Where were you? What did you do?’ What will you say to them? “I only see one way that this is going. Islam is the single biggest threat that faces Western Europe and America today.” Right-wing agitator Katie Hopkins’ words were not delivered to a meeting of the BNP in Barking but to the sympathetic ears of a roomful of Jewish people in the heart of North West London. She received the heartiest applause of Tuesday evening’s event – until former Ukip MEP Janice Atkinson hailed Donald Trump, Italy’s Matteo Salvini and Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro as the last bastions against “supra-national bodies that run our countries”.
They were speaking at the Pillar Hotel, in Hendon, owned by Benjamin Perl, after a screening of Homelands, a ‘documentary’ by Ms Hopkins and Ms Atkinson on the “Islamification of Europe” and the mass exodus it will supposedly necessitate. Ambrosine Shitrit and Sharon Klaff, known to many in the community as two of its most fervent pro-Israel activists, hailed the hotel for providing “a succah” after a series of venues withdrew. The film was shown in Jerusalem last month – with the assistance of the city’s Deputy Mayor, Fleur Hassan-Nahoum – after three cancellations and multiple interventions by the Board of Deputies.
The film itself opened with sepia-toned wartime footage of “the Britain our grandparents used to know,” with an obligatory reference to its “shared sense of British pride” to which people from “across the British colonies” flocked to partake. This melted into a sketch on Ms Hopkins’s visit to Savile Town, a suburb of Dewsbury in Yorkshire, with an Asian Muslim population topping 90 per cent. Vox pops of white British residents yielded soundbites such as “You’re just like a second class citizen,” and “Savile Town is a no-go area for white people” within the first five minutes. The central thesis of the film was the supposed destruction of “Judeo-Christian values”, relying heavily on exaggerations, slippery-slope arguments and cherry-picked statistics – as well as the hijacking of the memory of Mirielle Knoll, an 85-year-old Parisian Holocaust survivor who was murdered in 2018. One of the suspects is a Muslim man.
The film – interspersed by interviews of far-right MEPs of the Lega Nord and National Rally (formerly Front National) – finally moves to Israel, where Ms Hopkins expresses envy for Jews because “Brits don’t have an Israel” to flee to. Though the documentary was laughable as a piece of propaganda, the febrile atmosphere during the Q&A session was no joke. For about an hour, members of the approximately 100-strong audience – mostly but not exclusively Jewish – took turns to declare themselves such things as “devout Islamophobes” and adherents of the ultra-nationalist doctrine of Rabbi Meir Kahane.
If there were any moments of levity to savour, they were when Ms Atkinson argued for the need to end Muslim immigration to Britain “until they have integrated”, and when she declared herself, as an atheist, to be best-placed to protect Judeo-Christian values. Mr Perl, a prominent businessman and owner of the Pillar Hotel, justified hosting the event by saying that his hotel does not “inspect the rooms once hired”.
Ms Hopkins is notorious for describing refugees as “cockroaches” and asking about a “final solution” after the Isis-inspired attack on the Manchester Arena in 2017. Ms Atkinson is no stranger to controversy either – having made headlines in 2014 for referring to the Thai-born wife of a Ukip supporter as a “ting-tong”. She and the party’s then-leader, Nigel Farage, later apologised. Also there was Ros Pine, who was suspended last year from the Board of Deputies for six years for describing Muslims as “the vilest of animals”. She bragged about her record-breaking sanction.
And Anne-Marie Waters, founder of anti-Islam political party For Britain, was on a list of attendees read out before the film – by a “dog handler” named “Ginge” as he clutched Moishe, a large guard dog. After the screening, Jewish attendees batted away suggestions that the documentary was Islamophobic, universally insisting on the distinction between racism and "the truth". Tellingly, none wanted their names to appear in print.
One couple, who recently emigrated from South Africa, told the JC that Ms Hopkins and Ms Atkinson were just “telling it as it is”. The man said: “It’s happening right in front of you. You’re living in Cloud Cuckoo Land and you’re burying your head in the soil because the fact of the matter is you can see it... one point that was made about how [Muslims] are multiplying at an alarming rate. “You know the problem here is that it’s OK to call somebody a ‘f*cking Jew’. But it’s not OK to call a person a ‘f*cking Muslim’. But they get away with it.” His wife added: “‘P*ki’ is different. I don’t care if people call me a ‘bloody South African’. This is not about a country of origin – this is about religion.” A male attendee offered: “It’s food for thought… Whether it’s true or not, we’ve certainly laid the groundwork for it to happen, because of the numbers [of Muslims].” Another ticket-holder, a woman, then railed against members of the community who are “scared to call a spade a spade”. She erupted in cries of “fake news and lies” when Ms Hopkins’s apparent approval of a “final solution” was put to her.
Comparisons to crowds found at President Trump’s rallies in America’s backwaters are obvious and perhaps facile. But Jewish flirtation with the far right and extreme nationalism – less than a century removed from the Holocaust – is sickening and tragically ironic in equal measure.[3]

Supporting illegal settlements?

Perl was for some time trustee of the British Friends of Ariel University (formerly known as Education in Israel Trust) a UK charity. It raises funds for Ariel University, a higher education institution in Israel built entirely in an illegal settlement in the West Bank.[4]

A report on the website of MP Matthew Offord noes:

At a Conservative meeting hosted at Perl's Pillar Hotel on Thursday 13th September 2012, 'local people were presented with an opportunity to ask direct questions about the Government’s policy and approach on issues connected with the Middle East. A wide range of questions included the impact of the American Presidential elections, the Foreign Secretary’s recent comments on the decision by the Israeli Cabinet to change the status of the Ariel University, settlements in the West Bank, and the future for the Peace Process in Israel.[5]
A photo reproduced on the website of Matthew Offord MP showing Perl with the minister and three local Tory MPs. The caption for the photo read: 'Hendon resident and owner of The Pillar, Mr Benjamin Perl MBE, is accompanied by Middle East Mnister Alistair Burt MP, Theresa Villiers MP (Chipping Barnet), Mike Freer MP (Finchley & Golders Green) and Matthew Offord MP (Hendon)[5]

Perl is a trustee of British Friends of Ariel which, as the name suggests, sends money to support the illegal occupation of the settlement of Ariel.

Perl is also a trustee of British Friends of Lilmod Velaasos College (charity no. 1075760), which supports the ‘The Haredi Center for Technological Studies in Israel’ that has a branch in the settlement of Modi’in Illit.

Affiliations

Trustee of:

Charity trusteeships

Merge and identification note (20 October 2026): The register material below was merged from the separate page Benjamin Eliezer Perl (trustee, The Huntingdon Foundation Limited) (now a redirect here), which is about the same person. The Charity Commission records a Benjamin Eliezer Perl (trustee ID 525313) as a trustee of The Huntingdon Foundation Limited (charity 286504), B E Perl Charitable Trust, Beis Yaakov Primary School Foundation (1125487), British Friends Of Ariel and British Friends Of Hala Jerusalem Comprehensive Breast Center (1132772), the trusteeships listed for Benjamin Perl on this page.[6][7][8][9][10] Companies House records Benjamin Eliezer Perl MBE (born January 1945, officer ID BIFkKsH1vRZI8oN4cwICuFhdepw) as a director of Huntingdon Foundation Limited(the), the company behind the same charity, and of The Pillar Hotel Ltd; this page describes Perl as the owner of the Pillar Hotel in Hendon.[11]

Charity Charity number Role Date of appointment Charity status Source
The Huntingdon Foundation Limited 286504 Trustee 26 October 1991 Registered [6]
B E Perl Charitable Trust 282847 Chair 29 May 1981 Registered [7]
Beis Yaakov Primary School Foundation 1125487 Trustee Not disclosed Registered [8]
British Friends Of Ariel 296269 Chair 31 March 2002 Registered [9]
British Friends Of Hala Jerusalem Comprehensive Breast Center 1132772 Trustee Not disclosed Registered [10]

The Charity Commission register lists current trustees only; past trusteeships and resignation dates are not published in the data extract.

Historic charity trusteeships (archived register snapshots)

First and last archived snapshot of the Charity Commission register listing this name; these are not actual appointment or resignation dates.

Charity Charity number First seen Last seen Snapshots Source
The Huntingdon Foundation Limited 286504 17 February 2009 2 January 2019 7 [12][13]

Company directorships and appointments

Company Company no. Role Status Appointed on Resigned on Source
Huntingdon Foundation Limited(the) 01676956 Director Active – [14]
Parsha Limited 01064310 Director Resigned 2 July 1991 3 October 1995 [15]

Other appointments listed under the same Companies House officer ID (role dates are on the linked appointment pages):[11]

In the news

  • In June 2010 the Jewish Chronicle profiled Benjamin Perl, newly appointed MBE in the Queen's Birthday Honours, as the leading funder of Jewish state schools. Through what became The Huntingdon Foundation Limited he had helped fund around 20 Jewish schools, including Yavneh College in Borehamwood. In the interview he strongly criticised communal bodies and the new JCoSS school.[16]
  • A Jewish Chronicle opinion column by Keren David the following week criticised his remarks about JCoSS and communal organisations (opinion piece; critical source).[17]

Resources

Companies

Companies House lists the following appointments for Benjamin Eliezer Perl.[18]

Appointments at Companies House
Company Number Role Appointed Resigned Company status
London Torah Umesorah 12820366 Director 18 August 2020 10 July 2023 Dissolved
Nw Estates Limited 10499085 Director 28 November 2016 – Dissolved
The Pillar Hotel Ltd 08365469 Director 17 January 2013 – Active
K.K.L. Executor and Trustee Company Limited 00453042 Director 22 February 2012 27 February 2019 Active
Kkl Charity Accounts 05118360 Director 22 February 2012 27 February 2019 Active
Yavneh College Academy Trust 07643712 Director 30 June 2011 19 November 2013 Active
Bnos Beis Yaakov Primary School Limited 07236388 Director 27 April 2010 8 February 2018 Active
JNF Charitable Trust 00355248 Director 14 July 2009 27 February 2019 Active
Gyg Estates Ltd 06947354 Director 29 June 2009 – Active
Beis Yaakov Primary School Foundation 06590192 Director 12 May 2008 – Active
Winston House Management Limited 05774756 Director 7 April 2006 – Dissolved
Yavneh Foundation Trust 04443267 Director 20 January 2005 22 May 2024 Active
Beis Yaacov Primary School Limited 05025785 Director 26 January 2004 – Dissolved
Leading Animal Breeders Limited 00780023 Director 10 May 2002 16 July 2009 Dissolved
Brisden Properties Limited 00479378 Director 10 May 2001 16 July 2009 Active
Churchill House Management Limited 03689243 Director 29 December 1998 – Active
Pardes House And Beis Yaacov Primary Schools Foundation 03110852 Director 2 October 1995 9 June 2005 Active
Sixtrees Limited 01107694 Director 27 January 1994 – Active
Parsha Limited 01064310 Director 2 July 1991 3 October 1995 Active
Pillar Of Fire Chapel Limited 02411678 Director before 1992 – Active
Foframe Properties Limited 01699432 Director before 1992 – Active
Foframe Of Huntingdon Limited 01218993 Director before 1992 – Active
Arachim Limited 02329032 Director before 1992 18 July 2010 Active
Foframe Properties Limited 01699432 Secretary before 1992 30 June 2010 Active
Huntingdon Foundation Limited(the) 01676956 Director before 1992 – Active

Links to Israel and the IDF

Benjamin Eliezer Perl is recorded as a trustee of JNF Charitable Trust (from 14 July 2009 to 27 February 2019).[19] Support relevant to the Israel Defense Forces documented in the charity's records: grants to the Benji Hillman Foundation (lone soldiers); the Derech Eretz and Haluzit pre-army programmes; the Nachshon pre-army campus; Meitarim Lachish; Matnat Shichrur; and Beit Halochem UK. Amounts and years: Benji Hillman Foundation about £430,000 (2012–20); pre-army programmes about £1.09m (2012–20); Beit Halochem UK £92,131 (2025 report); about £1.61m documented in total.[20] Of the years named in these records, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019 fall within Benjamin Eliezer Perl's recorded tenure.

Notes on identity matching

The Companies House record is linked because the officer appears on the officer list of the charity's own company, under a matching name (born January 1945).

Notes

  1. ↑ BBC Newsnight Benjamin Perl on Newsnight - Faith Schools 12 Nov 2009
  2. ↑ Sacks Morasha Jewish Primary School Our people. Retrieved from the Internet Archive of 23 April 2013.
  3. ↑ Ben Weich Katie Hopkins gets warm reception as she calls Islam ‘single biggest threat’, Jewish Chronicle, JULY 03, 2019 18:59. Retrieved from the Internet Archive of 9 January 2023.
  4. ↑ Ariel University Ariel University Projects. Accessed 29 August 2015.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 Matthew Offord MP Local residents question Foreign Minister on Middle East issues19 September, 2012.
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 Charity Commission for England and Wales, The Huntingdon Foundation Limited trustees Charity Commission for England and Wales, accessed 15 October 2026; register data extract (trustee table), 13 October 2026.
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 Charity Commission for England and Wales, B E Perl Charitable Trust trustees Charity Commission for England and Wales, accessed 15 October 2026; register data extract (trustee table), 13 October 2026.
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 Charity Commission for England and Wales, Beis Yaakov Primary School Foundation trustees Charity Commission for England and Wales, accessed 15 October 2026; register data extract (trustee table), 13 October 2026.
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 Charity Commission for England and Wales, British Friends Of Ariel trustees Charity Commission for England and Wales, accessed 15 October 2026; register data extract (trustee table), 13 October 2026.
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 Charity Commission for England and Wales, British Friends Of Hala Jerusalem Comprehensive Breast Center trustees Charity Commission for England and Wales, accessed 15 October 2026; register data extract (trustee table), 13 October 2026.
  11. ↑ 11.0 11.1 Companies House, Benjamin Eliezer Perl Mbe appointments (officer ID BIFkKsH1vRZI8oN4cwICuFhdepw) Companies House, accessed 15 October 2026.
  12. ↑ UK Government Web Archive, The Huntingdon Foundation Limited – register entry (17 February 2009), archived snapshot of the Charity Commission register dated 17 February 2009, accessed 14 October 2026.
  13. ↑ UK Government Web Archive, The Huntingdon Foundation Limited – register entry (2 January 2019), archived snapshot of the Charity Commission register dated 2 January 2019, accessed 14 October 2026.
  14. ↑ Companies House, Huntingdon Foundation Limited(the) officers Companies House, accessed 15 October 2026.
  15. ↑ Companies House, Parsha Limited officers Companies House, accessed 15 October 2026.
  16. ↑ Interview: Benjamin Perl – Our chiefs can't fix Jewish education, so I do it The Jewish Chronicle, 24 June 2010, accessed 17 October 2026.
  17. ↑ Keren David (opinion; critical source), Generous he may be but this Perl lacks wisdom The Jewish Chronicle, 1 July 2010, accessed 17 October 2026.
  18. ↑ Companies House, Benjamin Eliezer PERL MBE – appointments (officer ID BIFkKsH1vRZI8oN4cwICuFhdepw; 25 appointment(s); date of birth January 1945), accessed 21 October 2026.
  19. ↑ Companies House, JNF Charitable Trust (00355248) – officers, accessed 21 October 2026.
  20. ↑ Charity Commission, JNF Charitable Trust (225910): accounts and annual returns Register of Charities, accessed 21 October 2026.
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