Culture Minister Margaret Hodge marked Holocaust Memorial Day by awarding £100,000 grants to London’s Jewish Museum and the Wiener Library.

The museum is set to reopen in March after a major redevelopment project. The library, a key Holocaust resource, is planning a 2011 relocation.

Ms Hodge noted that the recipients “play a vital part in ensuring that people are aware of what the Jewish community have given to this country and the world — and that we never forget the terrible wrongs suffered during the Nazi era”.

Prime Minister Gordon Brown added that “this funding will help bring all these important artefacts and dynamic exhibitions to a wider audience, giving visitors an invaluable understanding of Jewish heritage and a powerful reminder of why we must continue to fight prejudice and intolerance in all its forms”.

Welcoming the donation — the museum’s first direct grant from government — director Rickie Burman said the HMD theme, The Legacy of Hope, chimed with many of its exhibits.