THE horror of the Nazi Holocaust has inspired a group of youngsters to produce poems, paintings and stories.

Pupils in year nine at Staindrop Comprehensive School have been studying the events which claimed the lives of millions of Jews during the Second World War.

The group of 13 and 14-year-olds listened to stories about the atrocities carried out by the Nazis, and even heard a first-hand account from a former prisoner of a concentration camp.

The talk was given by Stephen Mendelson, from Sheffield, who was a child when his family were taken to a concentration camp by the Nazis in the early 1940s.

Mr Mendelson took the opportunity to speak to the pupils about his memories.

His visit helped to inspire a number of paintings and poems based on his account of life in the camps.

Headteacher Brian Kinnair said: "We hold a Holocaust day every year so that the pupils have a chance to understand the suffering that millions of Jews endured.