Humanities/History/Languages: Fleeing National Socialism & Finding Sanctuary In Wales: An Eyewitness Account With Renate Collins & Dr Andrea Hammel From Aberystwyth University

This talk includes an eyewitness account by child refugee Renate Collins who fled as a five year old from Prague to South Wales on a Kindertransport. The talk will be introduced by Dr Andrea Hammel, who will give a ten minute introduction and direct the talk. There will be an opportunity to ask questions at the end. The session is suitable as part of Holocaust Memorial Day commemoration.

Renate Collins was born Renate Kress in 1933 in Czechoslovakia. She lived with her Jewish family in Prague and attended nursery school when National Socialist Germany invaded and extended their antisemitic policies to her birth country.

Her parents decided to place her on a so-called Kindertransport. Through the Kindertransport scheme the British government allowed unaccompanied children and young people to flee to the UK without having to get a visa. All adult refugees had to apply for a visa and few were successful.

Renate left Prague in July 1939 aged five and was fostered by a couple in South Wales. 64 members of her family, including her parents, were murdered in the Holocaust. In this talk Renate will tell of her experiences as a child refugee, memories arriving and the challenges of integrating into a new society and culture.

Our events are designed so that a group of students can take part from a classroom, or students and teachers can take part as individuals, either from school or from home. This means that sessions will continue irrespective of possible school closures.

Suitable for: Key Stage 4 and Key Stage 5, and equivalent, students studying or with an interest in studying History, English, Modern Languages, Social Sciences, and related subjects. Teachers and members of school staff, as always, are welcome too and participants can join as individuals from school/college or home, or as a group from school/college.

Preparation/Pre-Reading: For further context, please look at this website: Refugees from National Socialism in Wales – Learning from the Past for the Future (aber.ac.uk) and consider any questions you would like to ask Renate and/or Andrea.

The IT Setup: The event will be run on Bluejeans and participants will be able to join using laptops, tablets, and mobile devices. If you are joining as a school group, we recommend connecting with one device and projecting on to a whiteboard. You will be able to interact with the university via a microphone and/or typed comments and questions. Full details will be sent to those who have registered (see below) prior to the event.

Booking a Place: This is free for schools and colleges. If you would like to take part in this event, please register your interest using the link to the registration form below: