However, the then Chief Rabbi of the United Kingdom, Israel Brodie, interdicted the appointment "because of his [Jacobs's] published views".

The British newspaper, The Jewish Chronicle, took up the issue and turned it into a cause célèbre which was reported in the national press, including The Times.

H. H. Collin, the architect of the original building, also designed the Walworth Road Synagogue (1867), the Assembly Rooms in Yarmouth, Norfolk (1867), and the City Liberal Club, London (1875).

New London Synagogue makes use of the structural cast-iron ‘railway station’ style, in the supporting columns, spandrels to the arches and gallery fronts; original pendant light fittings and a deep coved cornice.

The décor was redesigned in beige and brown by Misha Black, who also retained the classical timber Ark, now misleadingly painted white like stone, under a semi-circular archway.

[5] Men and women sit together during services (within a tripartite seating structure), and play equal parts in leading them.

Rabbi Jeremy Gordon has been a strong proponent of LGBTQ inclusion, and New London Synagogue offers same-sex couples marriages.

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, New London Synagogue began to provide a "set and forget" livestream of services, including High Holy Days.