Holocaust survivor featured in recent blockbuster visits Ashton Sixth Form College

Ashton Sixth Form College was honoured to welcome 94-year-old Holocaust survivor Lady Milena Grenfell-Baines as their speaker of the month.

Lady Milena and her sister came to live in Ashton-Under-Lyne after they were two of the 669 children saved by Sir Nicholas Winton, who arranged the Kinder Transport from Prague during the Second World War to bring them to safety in England in 1939. Their story is now being portrayed in the film ‘One Life’ starring Anthony Hopkins.

Yesterday, March 5, was the second time Lady Milena had returned to where she grew up, which was just around the corner from the college, bringing back many memories of the area for her as a child.

During the talk to students, Lady Milena shared her inspiring story of fleeing her home country of Czechoslovakia during Nazi occupation, starting her life in a new country and being reunited with her parents years later. She showed students artefacts such as her evacuation certificate and name tag. 

She also shared the extraordinary story of when, more than 40 years later, she discovered and met the man who saved her and her sister. The iconic clip was first featured on “That’s Life” in 1988 when Sir Nicholas Winton was reunited with many of the children he rescued.

Now recreated in the 2023 film “One Life” starring Anthony Hopkins and Helena Bonham Carter, Lady Milena features in both and remained friends with Sir Nicholas throughout his life.

Back in January, to mark Holocaust Memorial Day, art and design students at Ashton Sixth Form College showcased some amazing artwork dedicated to the day, following the brief of ‘survival'. The pieces were shown to Lady Milena during her visit, who was so impressed by the artwork, she recommended they were shared with the Holocaust Educational Trust.

Lady Milena commented on how important it is to share her story at the college to encourage young people to always be kind to each other and appreciate those they have in life.

Quoting Sir Nicholas Winton, she said: “It’s not good to just not do bad things."

She challenged all students to do just one good deed a day and see the difference they make.

Centre principal Lisa Richards said: "We have run our Speaker of the Month initiative for almost two years, but I have never seen such a full house as Lady Milena’s talk.

"And what a talk it was, truly bringing history to life with the very personal touch that comes from hearing - first hand - someone's unique story. Students were in awe. Lady Milena's profound take-away message, 'If it is not impossible, it can be done', left our young people with both a new understanding of this significant part of history and inspiration to consider their role in shaping the present and the future."

Ashton Sixth Form College’s Speaker of the Month Programme is an excellent opportunity for students to immerse themselves in super curriculum enrichment. Each month, the college sees a high-profile keynote speaker discussing different topics such as employability skills, philosophical debate, tips, advice and much more. The programme is varied for all areas of the curriculum and links closely to the college's priority of careers and employability. Previous speakers have included Alex Scott MBE, actor Phil Mealy and poet Tony Walsh.

The college said they would like to extend their thanks to Lady Milena for such an amazing and inspiring talk, leaving students and staff with such an important message.

Lady Milena (pictured right) with Centre Principal Lisa Richards