HARWICH and Dovercourt featured in a talk at The Wiener Holocaust Library in London as part of Refugee week.

Mike Levy, of Harwich Kindertransport Learning (HKL), delivered an illustrated talk about the role of the Dovercourt holiday camp in accommodating and looking after about 2,000 mostly Jewish refugee children between 1938 and 1939.

While Ian Wolter, the sculptor of the commemorative statue Safe Haven on Harwich Quay, also spoke at length about his work.

HKL chair, Debbie Patterson Jones and the Harwich High Steward, Sue Daish were also in attendance and both addressed the audience, which included several family members of Professor Leslie Brent.

The late Prof Brent arrived in Harwich on the first transport on 2nd December 1938 and became a distinguished immunologist.

HKL has made a travelling exhibition about his life which was displayed in Harwich in January earlier this year.

The exhibition coincided with both Holocaust Memorial Day 2024 and the 85th anniversary of the Kindertransport – where 10,000 mostly Jewish children were sent to safety in Britain during 1938 to 1939.

Harwich was the main port of entry for the thousands of child refugees and in September 2022 the safe haven Kindertransport sculpture was unveiled – depicting five children, in bronze, stepping down on to safe ground.