Holocaust Memorial Day was marked in Hounslow by a virtual event with pupils from Lampton School and representatives of Hounslow faith groups, to commemorate the victims of the Holocaust and of more recent genocides.

Holocaust Memorial Day is held on 27 January each year to remember the six million Jews murdered during the Holocaust, alongside the millions of other people killed under the Nazi's persecution in the 1930s and 40s.

The date, 27 January, marks the anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau, the Nazi's largest death camp.

This year's Holocaust Memorial Day theme 'One Day' offers the opportunity to reflect and learn about the Holocaust, Nazi Persecution, and the subsequent genocides, in the hope that there may be 'One Day' in the future with no genocide or racial hatred.

Students and guests heard the first-hand survivor testimony of Holocaust survivor, Dr Martin Stern MBE.

Martin was born in 1938 and lived in Holland. His parents had recently fled Germany to escape Nazi persecution, however, two years after his birth, the Nazis invaded the Netherlands.

'One Day' in 1944, Martin's life changed forever. At the aged five, Martin was arrested at nursery simply because his father was Jewish.

Martin and his one-year-old sister Erica were sent to the transit camps of Westerbork and Theresienstadt, before being liberated in May 1945.

Martin later settled in Britain, studying medicine at Oxford university. He now shares his story with school children across the country to ensure the horrors of the Holocaust are never forgotten.

The Leader of Hounslow Council, Cllr Steve Curran said: "Today we mark Holocaust Memorial Day across Hounslow bringing our diverse communities together to remember the victims of the Holocaust and pay tribute to the survivors.

"We are incredibly lucky to have heard from Dr Martin Stern, to become witnesses to his experiences of Nazi persecution and where hatred leads in society if left unchecked.

"We must always be on our guard against the forms of hatred that allowed the Holocaust to occur. Teaching the next generation about one of the darkest periods of modern history, is vital in achieving this."

The Mayor of Hounslow, Cllr Bishnu Gurung said: "Hounslow is very proud to support this event to mark Holocaust Memorial Day each year. It's something we have done for many years and is one of the most important events in our civic calendar.

"I would like to thank Dr Martin Stern for sharing his moving story, along with the pupils and staff from Lampton School and members of Hounslow's local faith groups via the Hounslow SACRE executive who were in attendance."

In the five years Auschwitz was open, an estimated 1.1 million people were killed at the concentration camp, around 90 per cent of whom were Jewish.

Approximately six million Jewish and five million non-Jewish people were killed in the Holocaust.