A groundbreaking digital project from the Holocaust Educational Trust (HET) has been shortlisted for this year’s Charity Awards, the longest-running and most prestigious awards scheme in the sector.
HET’s Testimony 360, which aims to keep the memory and legacy of the Holocaust alive for generations to come, was created in conjunction with USC Shoah Foundation and is the first of its kind in British schools.
It was designed to support the national curriculum and help Year 9-13 pupils aged 13 to 18 understand the Holocaust.
Testimony 360 at school – Manfred Goldberg wearing VR headset. Pic: HET PR Handout.
Costing more than £1million to develop, it rolled out nationally in June 2024 and features survivors Manfred Goldberg, Susan Pollack, Hannah Lewis and John Dobai – each spent five days being filmed.
Students use AI technology to have a digital, interactive conversation with a Holocaust survivor, hearing their authentic answers and use VR headsets to explore the key sites associated with that testimony.
Karen Pollock, chief executive of HET, said the resource is “revolutionising how students learn about history in the classroom.”
Testimony 360 at school – Students interact with Manfred’s virtual testimony
Pic: PR Handout HET
Pollock adds: “Nothing will replace a Holocaust survivor standing in front of a captivated class of school children whilst they share their story, but 80 years after the liberation of the concentration and death camps and end of the second world war, we are at a crucial juncture where living history will soon be just history. This programme will help to ensure that the legacy of these precious eyewitnesses lives on beyond their lifetimes.”
Holocaust Education Trust is one of three charities shortlisted in the education and training category, alongside organisations Get Further and St John’s Hospice North Lancashire and South Lakes.
Matthew Nolan, chief executive of Civil Society Media which organises the Charity Awards, congratulated HET on making the highly-coveted shortlist. He said: “At a time when the sector is struggling with higher costs, shrinking donations and ever-increasing demand for its work, it is reassuring and inspiring to see the extent and quality of charitable activity that is still going on across the country.
“We offer our heartfelt congratulations to all the charities on this year’s shortlist; we know that times are tough and you should all be very proud of getting this far. We wish the Holocaust Educational Trust the best of luck on the night.”
Jewish News’ Michelle Rosenberg trialing the revolutionary Testimony 360 VR. June 2024.
Other organisations shortlisted in their respective categories include: The Mayhew Home, StreetVet and Trees for Cities (animals and the environment); Kilmartin Museum, Scene & Heard, Services For Education (arts, culture and heritage); Ashden Climate Solutions, The Donkey Sanctuary and National AIDS Trust (campaigning and advocacy); Delight Charity, MYTIME Young Carers and Spark Inside (children and youth); The Brain Charity, icandance and National Autistic Society (disability); Cumbria Community Foundation, Project Giving Back and Steve Morgan Foundation (grand-making and funding); 4Louis, Friends of Moorfields Eye Hospital and Standing Together Against Domestic Abuse (STADA) (healthcare and medical research); Alfanar Venture Philanthropy, Oxfam and Windle Trust International (international aid and development); Advance Advocacy and Non Violence Community Education, Street Talk and Turning Tides Homelessness (social care, advice and support).
Testimony 360 BTS – Manfred Goldberg being interviewed for virtual testimony. Pic: HET
The 10 category winners, plus the recipients of the overall award for excellence and the Daniel Phelan Award for Outstanding Achievement, will be announced at a black-tie dinner on Thursday 3 July, held at the Royal Lancaster Hotel in London.
The evening will be hosted by BBC news presenter Asad Ahmad, who will be joined on the night by a host of celebrities, representatives of the shortlisted charities, as well as leaders from Britain’s best known and best loved charities.
