ARTWORK by special needs pupils at Mill Green School has been selected for national exhibition marking 75th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau.

Their art of a Memorial Flame has been chosen by judges to feature at the official Holocaust Memorial Day ceremony.

The artwork is one of 75 chosen to represent each year since the liberation of Auschwitz.

These will be displayed at an exhibition which is set to be unveiled at the UK Ceremony for Holocaust Memorial Day in London on January 27 2020, at which numerous VIPs are expected to be in attendance.

More than 300 groups from across the country registered to take part in the nationwide competition launched by the Holocaust Memorial Day Trust (HMDT) to encourage more people to remember the six million Jews murdered during the Holocaust.

The panellists judging the competition were: Sarah Donaldson, arts editor at the Observer; Nick Sharratt, renowned illustrator and author; Kathleen Soriano, Chair of the Liverpool Biennial, and judge on SkyArts Artist of the Year; Anita Peleg, HMDT Trustee and daughter of Naomi Blake, a sculptor and Holocaust survivor; and Olivia Marks-Woldman, Chief Executive of the Holocaust Memorial Day Trust.

Claire Lynch, a teacher at Mill Green School, said: “It is important that all children have the opportunity to learn about our history to make a better future.

"The inspiration for our art piece was from a discussion with our students about the theme ‘Stand together’ and what that meant to them.

"From the discussion, a group of students collected quotes from staff and their peers on what they feel would make this world a better place.

"Each small flame within the picture represents some of these hopes and dreams for a better future standing together.

"We are so proud of our students’ hard work and achievement in being chosen as one of the 75 flames, and so grateful to the judging panel for giving us this honour.”

The ‘75 Memorial Flames’ competition was launched with the creation of a sculpture by artist and survivor of the Holocaust, Maurice Blik, who was liberated from Bergen-Belsen concentration camp as a child. The project is part of a wider programme of events to enable others to learn from the horrors of genocide.