A NEW exhibition called ‘Britain and the Holocaust’ has opened in London.

Holocaust Educational Trust regional ambassador Zoe Umpleby, from Poole, who helped curate the exhibition, was at its launch at the Wiener Library, Russell Square.

The exhibition aims to challenge misconceptions about Britain and its reaction to the Holocaust.

It includes artefacts such as Red Cross telegrams between Kindertransport refugee Hannele Kurn in Britain and her parents in Germany, a poster advertising a British fascist rally, and a copy of a deportation list of a Jewish victim from the Nazi-occupied Channel Islands to Auschwitz.

Zoe said: “I have always been moved by stories of the Kindertransport, some of which are included in this exhibition.

“I cannot comprehend the trauma families must have gone through in those moments when they had to decide whether or not the family should send their children to safety.

“No human has the right to destroy the love of a family, and that is why it is so important to remember such tragic events.”

Central to the exhibition is the first-hand testimony of survivors. Holocaust survivor Janine Webber said: “We survivors sometimes worry that our stories will be forgotten.

“However, the incredible work of these regional ambassadors – and this exhibition – means we can be reassured that they won’t be.”

The Holocaust Educational Trust was founded in 1988 with a simple aim - to raise awareness and understanding in schools and the wider public of the Holocaust and its relevance today.

Following on from students’ involvement in the Lessons from Auschwitz Project, participants became Holocaust Educational Trust Ambassadors - volunteers committed to educating others.

Holocaust Educational Trust chief executive Karen Pollock said: “The next generation’s tireless commitment to preserving the memory of the Holocaust has been demonstrated by the time and effort that these young people have put into co-curating this extraordinary exhibition.

“They, and thousands of others across the country who we are proud to call our ambassadors, are working to ensure the Holocaust will continue to be remembered in Britain long after the last eyewitnesses are sadly no longer with us.”

The public exhibition runs until June 15, 2016.

The Wiener Library is located at 29 Russell Square, London WC1B 5DP.