The remarkable life of Jane Haining, a Scottish missionary who worked in Paisley and died at the Auschwitz concentration camp, will be celebrated at a special event led by UNISON next week, the union says today (Thursday).
It will include the screening of a new short film Jane Haining: A Mission of Love, alongside the launch of educational resources for schools across Renfrewshire.
Organised by UNISON in partnership with Renfrewshire Council and the Church of Scotland, the event in Paisley on Tuesday (27 January) will bring together trade unionists, pupils, faith organisations and members of the local community.
Artwork will also be unveiled for a commemorative mural to be installed at Brown’s Lane and Shuttle Street in the town.
Jane worked at JP Coats Thread Mill in Ferguslie, Paisley, and as a missionary for the Church of Scotland in Hungary. She refused to abandon the Jewish girls in her care during the Nazi occupation and was arrested by the Gestapo. She died at Auschwitz-Birkenau in 1944.
The event is part of UNISON’s ongoing work to raise awareness of Jane’s life, values and sacrifice through education and community engagement. The union runs an annual Auschwitz study tour, where delegates learn about her story and attend a memorial service near the block where she was imprisoned.
Mark Ferguson, UNISON convenor and Renfrewshire branch secretary will open commemoration alongside Provost Lorraine Cameron. A wreath will be laid and members of Jane’s family will lay candles in her memory. There will also be performances by Renfrewshire school pupils, singer-songwriter Sharon Martin, and the PACE Theatre Group.
UNISON convenor and Renfrewshire branch secretary Mark Ferguson said: “Jane Haining’s story is one of compassion, bravery and an unshakeable commitment to protecting vulnerable children.
“This event brings together her family, local schools, community groups and trade unionists to ensure her sacrifice is remembered and understood.
“By sharing her story through film, education and public art, UNISON aims to ensure future generations understand where hatred can lead and why it’s important to stand up for others.”
Moderator of the Church of Scotland General Assembly Rt Rev Rosie Frew said: “We live in increasingly turbulent times and it is vitally important that people learn the lessons of history.
“That is why it is very welcome that a new film about Jane Haining has been made for schools in Renfrewshire and a mural commemorating her life will be installed in Paisley.
“She served as the matron at the Scottish Mission boarding school for girls in Budapest, Hungary, from 1932-1944. Jane was on holiday in the UK when the war broke out in 1939, but immediately returned to Budapest to be with ‘her’ girls, many of whom were Jews who had been orphaned or abandoned by their parents.
“A woman of tremendous courage, Jane was determined to continue doing her duty and stick to her post. She famously asked: ‘If these children need me in days of sunshine, how much more do they need me in days of darkness?’
“In addition to looking after vulnerable children who were persecuted due to an accident of birth, Jane and her colleagues taught domestic service management skills to Jewish women in the years between the Nazis coming to power in 1933 and war breaking out, to help them emigrate to the safety of the UK.
“She was fully aware of the incredible risks she was taking after the war started, but repeatedly refused Church of Scotland pleas to leave Budapest and return home.
“Jane was simultaneously an ordinary and extraordinary woman and her story is one of courage, heroism, decency and personal sacrifice, reminding us that when we feel powerless, there is always something that we can do.
“Her life is a fine example of service over self-interest and we hope that this new film will eventually be shown to pupils in all schools across Scotland to help keep the memory of Jane alive for generations to come.”
Notes to editors:
– The event on Tuesday takes place at Coats Paisley, High Street, Paisley and runs from 1.15pm till 3.30pm. Full information can be found here
– Jane Haining was a farmer’s daughter from Dunscore in Dumfriesshire. She trained at St Colm’s Women Missionary College in Edinburgh and her dedication service took place in the former St Stephen’s Church building, the day before she left for Budapest, Hungary, in June 1932.
– On November 24, 2025, a Stolperstein – a small brass plaque commemorating victims of the Holocaust – was installed in a pavement outside the building. It was the first of its kind in Scotland. A Stolperstein in her memory was also embedded in the pavement at the entrance of St Columba’s Church of Scotland in Budapest in 2004, next door to the former Scottish Mission School.
– Jane’s bravery in protecting the children in her care at the expense of her own life led to her being posthumously awarded a Heroine of the Holocaust medal by the UK Government. She’s also the only Scot to be named Righteous Among the Nations at Yad Vashem in Jerusalem, Israel’s memorial to victims of the Holocaust.
– Jane Haining’s life is celebrated in an exhibition at Dunscore Church and Queen’s Park Govanhill Church in Glasgow – which she attended while living in the city prior to her move to Budapest. The church has stained glass windows in her memory.
– In 2021, a street near Loanhead in Midlothian was named ‘Haining Park’ in her honour. A street in Budapest also bears Jane’s name.