Welcome to The Association of Jewish Refugees

The AJR provides an extensive range of social and welfare services, and grants financial assistance to Jewish victims of Nazi persecution living in Great Britain.  Read more ...

	Visit to Windermere exhibition The Child Survivors' Association (special interest group of the AJR) organised a visit to the 'Windermere Boys' exhibition at The Manchester Jewish Museum where they were met by local members of the AJR.[more...]
	Yom HaShoah at AJR AJR members lit six memorial candles in a special ceremony to commemorate Yom HaShoah at the AJR Centre on 19 April. Led by AJR's Finance Director, David Kaye, and by guest speaker Keith Simons, the Chaplain for Jewish prisoners, members recited El Male Rachamim and Kaddish.[more...]
	Germany bestows award on Frank Meisler Artist Frank Meisler has been decorated with the Officer’s Cross of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany at a ceremony on 29 March in Israel.[more...]
	AJR members meet Israeli Ambassador We were thrilled to invite members from across the country to meet HE The Ambasasdor of Israel, Daniel Taub, at a reception at the Wiener Library on Wednesday 28 March.[more...]
	KT Newsletter Click here to read the latest edition of the Kindertransport Newsletter.[link]
	GSI Newsletter Click here to read the latest Generations of the Shoah International (GSI) newsletter.[link]
	Austrian residency letter In the February edition of the AJR Journal we published a notice about a letter sent to some AJR members who receive an Austrian state pension.[more...]
	We Remember The Child Survivors Association, a Special Interest Group of the AJR, launched 'WE REMEMBER' on 12 February at an event at the Wiener Library.[more...]
	Compensation programmes improved Following negotiations with the German government, the Claims Conference announced a series of improvements in compensation programmes that they administer. These changes affect applicants to the Article II and the Hardship Funds.[more...]
	AJR members enjoy hospitality of German Ambassador Some 150 guests enjoyed a wonderful reception hosted by HE The German Ambassador, Georg Boomgaarden, at his Residence on 20 December 2011 to conclude the celebrations for the AJR's 70th anniversary.[more...]
	ITS records launched in the UK At an historic event at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office on 14 December, AJR member Eugene Black spoke about his reaction to receiving records from the International Tracing Service in Bad Arolsen and about the persecution he endured at the hands of the Nazis in several concentration camps. The records documented his journey from deportation in Hungary through several concentration camps until liberation at Bergen Belsen.[more...]
	Kinder statue unveiling Supported by the Association of Jewish Refugees (AJR), a statue dedicated to the Kindertransport was unveiled at a moving ceremony in the Hook of Holland at the end of November. Designed by internationally acclaimed sculptor Frank Meisler, Channel Crossing to Life, commemorates the role played by Dutch people in helping to save the lives of Jewish children fleeing Nazi oppression.[more...]
	Ludwig Spiro It is with deep sadness that we announce the passing of our President, Ludwig Spiro, at the age of 99.[more...]
	Kristallnacht commemoration More than 100 AJR members joined in a service to commemorate the 73rd anniversary of Kristallnacht at the Belsize Square Synagogue on Wednesday 9 November 2011 .[more...]
	Austrian pension legislation update Owing to a legislative change, the second "special" pension payment that is usually remitted by the Austrian pension authority (Pensionsversicherung) in October will in future be paid in November.[more...]
	Company for Location & Restitution of Holocaust Victims Assets (Israel) A list of approximately 7,000 names of owners of bank accounts and other properties in Israel that were not claimed after World War II have been listed on the website of Hashava, the Company for Location and Restitution of Holocaust Victims' Assets Ltd. Hashava was established in Israel in 2006 by the Holocaust Victims Assets Law.[more...]
	Ghetto Fund - new directive At the end of July the German government introduced a new directive which significantly improves the entitlements of Holocaust survivors who worked in Nazi-controlled ghettos during the Second World War.[more...]
	AJR Centre relocation The Paul Balint AJR Centre will be re-launched at the Belsize Square Synagogue, Belsize Park, in January 2012. The relocation follows the decision of the Association of Jewish Refugees (AJR) Charitable Trust to close down the Centre in Cleve Road, West Hampstead and, in due course, sell the premises.[more...]
	AJR Journal archive online To mark the 65th anniversary of our first publication, we are delighted to announce that the entire back catalogue of the AJR Journal, stretching back to the first edition in January 1946, is now available on our website at www.ajr.org.uk/pdfjournals[more...]
	Task Force for International Cooperation on Holocaust education, remembrance and research The AJR is proud to be part of the UK delegation to the Task Force for International Cooperation on Holocaust education, remembrance and research (ITF), which brings together governments and non-governmental organisations to raise awareness of the Holocaust and place political and social leaders' support behind the need for Holocaust education, remembrance, and research both nationally and internationally.[more...]
	Experts in Volunteering We've received accreditation from Greater London Volunteering which ensures that organisations are managing volunteers well and providing Londoners with fulfilling volunteering experiences. [link]
	Jewish Refugees from Germany and Austria in Britain The AJR is delighted to announce the publication of a new book by Dr Anthony Grenville, Consultant Editor, AJR Journal. Jewish Refugees from Germany and Austria in Britain:Their Image in ‘AJR Information’ (Vallentine Mitchell, 2009) is the first history of the refugees who fled to Britain from the German-speaking lands after 1933.[more...]
	Exile Studies With the kind permission of the Research Centre for German and Austrian Exile Studies, we reproduce here an article about the AJR written by the AJR Journal’s Consultant Editor Dr Tony Grenville.[more...]
	Claims Conference The AJR distributes funds allocated to the UK by the Claims Conference following its negotiations with, amongst others, the German and Austrian governments for social and welfare programmes for Holocaust survivors and refugees.[more...]
	Continental Britons exhibition: Jewish Refugees from Nazi Europe We are delighted to announce that we have now added the Continental Britons exhibition, sponsored by the AJR in conjunction with the Jewish Museum, to our website. Please click here to view the exhibition.[more...]