WHITEFIELD grandmother Estelle Silverberg can now join in Passover celebrations thanks to her son and daughter-in-law.

Thoughtful Ian Silverberg (39) and his wife, also named Estelle, have published a special phonetic prayer book with her in mind.

Like many Jewish people, Mrs Silverberg, of Barnard Avenue, enjoys visiting her local synagogue but is unable to read Hebrew.

Most families have the prayer book Haggadah, which they read for two days over Passover, but the text is in Hebrew with an English translation.

For Mrs Silverberg that poses a problem as she cannot join in reading the prayers properly.

"She can follow the English translation but it is not the same," said Estelle, "so we have taken the Hebrew words and as we say them we have written them in English. It is a phonetic or transliterated version."

The couple, who live in Broughton, can both read Hebrew, Estelle picked up the language while living in Israel for a year and Ian was taught Hebrew at King David Junior School, before attending Heys Road School in Prestwich.

The initial idea of producing a transliterated Haggadah was Estelle's (33).

She said: "It was just a thought I had and I was sure we could do it. I researched it on the internet to see if there was a phonetic book, but there wasn't one anywhere. There are children's books but they include songs. When we started doing this we realised that there were many people who could benefit from it."

The book, entitled The Phonetic Haggadah for Pesach, is available to buy priced £10.99 from Jewish book shops. Stockists include Tradition, in Park Lane Whitefield and the Jewish Book Centre in Ashbourne Grove, Broughton.

Alternatively, contact the Silverbergs at iansilv_65@yahoo.com