Three boys who fled Nazi Europe on Kindertransport and found refuge at a Lancashire school
Many were told they were ‘going on an adventure’, expecting a short term trip. The truth was far more horrifying
As the threat of war hung over Europe in the late 1930s, three children boarded the Kindertransport, looking for safety in England. The scheme saw unaccompanied Jewish children leave behind their parents – and everything they knew – to flee the peril they faced in Germany, Austria and Czeckoslovakia.
Brought to the UK by the Quakers, they were first housed at the Dovercourt reception camp near Harwich. However, supported by two young men from King’s College Cambridge, who worked to secure their sponsorship and education, the boys were offered scholarships Rossall School.
(Image: Getty Images)
Before long, they travelled to Lancashire to take up their places at the Church of England institution in Fleetwood. The school offered a safe haven for the boys, providing a place for them to continue their education away from persecution. One later said ‘Rossall saved my life’ as he reflected on his time there.
Now, 87 years later, a sculpture is planned to commemorate the boys’ stories in a new Garden of Reflection at the school. In 2022 a similar statue was unveiled at Harwich, where the trio first arrived, designed by renowned sculptor Ian Wolter. Rossall hopes to commission Wolter to design the sculpture should it reach its £30,000 fundraising goal.
Andrew McBride, Headmaster of Rossall School, said the garden will ensure the boys’ stories are “not only preserved, but continue to inspire”.
He said: “Rossall School is proud to be creating a Garden of Reflection, a dedicated space that honours the young boys who arrived at the school through the Kindertransport. These students came to Rossall at a time of immense uncertainty, carrying with them stories of loss, resilience and extraordinary courage.
“Their experiences form a unique and deeply important part of our history, and their legacy continues to shape who we are as a community today. At its heart, this project is about belonging. The Kindertransport students who found refuge at Rossall became part of the fabric of the school.
An CGI of the planned statue to commemorate the stories of three boys who found refuge from Nazi Europe at Rossall School in Lancashire(Image: Rossall)
“In creating this garden, we reaffirm a simple but powerful idea: that every young person should feel safe, valued, and that they belong. This message resonates strongly with our students today, and it is one we are committed to carrying forward into the future.”
“Soon thereafter he was accepted into Rossall and I am excited and moved that the school is planning to create this Garden of Reflection with a memorial to Rossall’s Kinderstransport children and by implication all refugee children.
“This garden is a life-affirming gesture by the school that was initiated entirely by them and I am proud to support this project and delighted that the school has found such a world-class sculptor as Ian Wolter to do it justice.”
Sculptor Ian Wolter said: “In 2022, Dame Stephanie Shirley unveiled Safe Haven, my first memorial to the Kindertransport. The new bronze sculpture will represent the three kinder transport boys that Rossall hosted.
“Though I’ll sculpt the statues from live models, I’ll model their faces from photographs of the actual boys. “
Rossall continues to provide support to children and their families fleeing war, including those affected by the ongoing war in Ukraine. This has included providing housing on-site to a Ukrainian family, offering a number of funded spaces to Ukrainian children and establishing a community hub for Ukrainians and their sponsor families living locally.