Stroud pupils have visited Germany to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the liberation of Bergen-Belsen.

Three students from Archway were among 200 others from the South West to visit the concentration camp last Thursday.

This April will mark the 75th year since the concentration camp was liberated by British troops from the 11th Armoured Division.

After liberation 14,000 Jews died from the effects of their imprisonment. Following a difficult period of clearing the camps population to nearby German army barracks, every hut was burned to the ground to contain the typhus epidemic. It is believed that Anne Frank died of typhus at the camp a few weeks before the liberation.

Whilst all the former buildings were destroyed, students have been tasked with understanding how the space represented, at different times, the worst horrors of the Second World War and the Holocaust as well as the rebirth and the blossoming of post-war Jewish life.

As ambassadors for the Belsen 75 project Helen, Talia and Claire will now spend their time working on a legacy project to help other students understand the necessity of tackling religious intolerance, antisemitism and extremism.

This Sunday they will be reunited with the 200 other students involved in the project at Exeter where they will be reflecting on their visit and plan their next steps.