Rudi Oppenheimer shares his life story with The Oratory pupils

Rudi Oppenheimer lived in Berlin when the Nazis came to power. He was invited to The Oratory school to share his experiences.

The family of four fled to England in 1933 as Hitler's antisemitic policies began to take hold.

Whilst in England Mr Oppenheimer's parents had a baby girl who would later save them all from being sent to extermination camps.

The family moved to Amsterdam before the Nazis invaded once again.

They were moved into the Jewish quarter of Amsterdam and only avoided extermination camps as the young girl had English citizenship.

Nazi officials tried to use these 'exchange Jews' to trade for German families living in British colonies.

The family were sent to Bergen-Belsen, a concentration camp in north Germany. Whilst they were there Mr Oppenheimer's parents died from an illness, orphaning him along with his young sister and brother Paul.

The children were freed by Cossacks and sent back to the west.

Marcus Fec, head of history at The Oratory School, said: “It is a privilege for us to welcome Rudi Oppenheimer to our school and his testimony will remain a powerful reminder of the horrors so many experienced.

"We are grateful to the Holocaust Educational Trust for coordinating the visit and we hope that by hearing Rudi’s testimony, it will encourage our students to learn from the lessons of the Holocaust and make a positive difference in their own lives."

The Holocaust Educational Trust organises events across the country to ensure lessons are learnt from the Nazi regime.

Karen Pollock MBE, chief executive of the trust said: "Rudi’s story is one of tremendous courage during horrific circumstances and by hearing his testimony, students will have the opportunity to learn where prejudice and racism can ultimately lead.

"At the Trust, we impart the history of the Holocaust to young people, to ensure that we honour the memory of those whose lives were lost and take forward the lessons taught by those who survived."