Emily ffrench, Year 13, Tonbridge Grammar School.

"It was the best and worst experience of my life. Hearing about the awful things that happened in Auschwitz-Birkenau is nothing in comparison to actually seeing it with your own eyes - it made it so much more real and yet, at the same time, so much more unbelievable.

"When I actually saw it for myself, my entire outlook on the Holocaust changed entirely and I found myself constantly thinking, 'How did this happen? How was this allowed to happen?' Walking around, it is so easy to lose all faith in the goodness of humanity and I would advise people to only go there if they really want to get something out of it.

"The awful conditions the prisoners of the camp had to endure were unimaginable. It was a bitterly cold day; my friend and I were freezing cold and we were wearing 6 to 7 layers of clothing! We could not imagine what it would be like to wear the thin single layer of uniform the prisoners were forced to wear (and sometimes they were even stripped naked).

"The feeling of disbelief was a strong one when I was walking around Auschwitz-Birkenau. It was so difficult to believe how all of it could possibly have been allowed to happen and yet, it did. My outlook on life, upon leaving the camp, had changed completely and I have never been more grateful that I had the freedom to leave somewhere in my entire life."