British Academy and AJR mark 60 years of refugee fellowship

The British Academy, in partnership with the Association of Jewish Refugees (AJR), hosted a special anniversary conference on Monday 10 November to celebrate 60 years of the Thank Offering to Britain (TOTB) Fellowship — a landmark fund established by Jewish refugees to express their gratitude to the British people for offering sanctuary during the Nazi era.

Held at the British Academy’s historic home on Carlton House Terrace in London, the event brought together former Fellows, academics, descendants of refugees, and representatives from the AJR and the British Academy.

The day featured a series of discussions, lectures, and reflections, honouring the legacy of the Fellowship and the community whose generosity made it possible.

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The Thank Offering to Britain Fund was founded in 1965 from donations made by Jewish refugees through the AJR.

On 8 November 1965, the Nobel Prize winning biochemist Sir Hans Krebs presented a cheque for £96,000 (around £2 million in today’s money) to Lord Lionel Robbins, then president of the British Academy. The date was chosen to coincide with the anniversary of Kristallnacht, as a symbolic act of remembrance and appreciation.

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For six decades, the Fellowship has supported research into “human studies widely interpreted and their bearing on the well-being of the inhabitants of the United Kingdom.”

It has funded scholars across disciplines ranging from human rights to the arts, philosophy, and history — including several who have gone on to become Fellows of the British Academy.

Opening the day, Hetan Shah, chief executive of the British Academy, reflected on the Fellowship as “a living testament to the power of gratitude and knowledge to shape a better society.”

Speakers included: Dr Anthony Grenville, The Association of Jewish Refugees; Lord Daniel Finkelstein, journalist and Member of the House of Lords; Professor Stefan Collini, University of Cambridge; Professor Sue Vice, University of Sheffield; Professor Richard Anderson, University of Edinburgh; Dr Olena Miliienko, University of Warwick; Professor Iryna Smaznova, Odesa Law Academy; The Honourable Alice Walpole, director of Goodenough College and former UN Assistant Secretary-General; Matthew Kneale, author and son of Judith Kerr and Dr Till Greite, British Academy Postdoctoral Fellow.

AJR chief executive Michael Newman, said: “The ‘Thank Offering to Britain Fellowship’ remains one of the most meaningful expressions of gratitude ever made by a refugee community and one the AJR continues to be immensely proud. Sixty years on, we honour both the generosity of the refugees who contributed to it and the scholarship it continues to inspire.”

British Academy chief executive Hetan Shah added: “We are proud to come together with the Association of Jewish Refugees to mark 60 years of the Thank-Offering to Britain Fellowship – a partnership which began in the earliest days of the fund’s inception. More than a fund, the Fellowship stands as a lasting bridge between generations – supporting research that reflects the compassion, intellectual curiosity, and generosity of its founders, while enriching the cultural and academic fabric of British society.”