PUPILS across Worcestershire have been praised for their imaginative accounts written for a countywide competition.

Robert Collier, of St Joseph's RC Primary School in Warndon, Worcester, was named as a joint winner in the Anne Frank Diary competition.

More than 500 schoolchildren across the county were asked to imagine that they were a present-day asylum seeker or refugee who had secretly arrived in Britain.

The competition is part of an education initiative alongside the Anne Frank Exhibition, which visits Worcester Cathedral next month.

Robert, and Sophie Lowick, from Aston Fields Middle School in Bromsgrove, who shared the top prize, will receive their prizes from the Bishop of Dudley, the Rt Rev David Walker, at the launch of the exhibition on Friday, January 4.

The competition was judged by a national senior marker for Key Stage Two English.

"The standard was very good indeed," said Jenny Molyneux, who is also a teacher in Kidderminster.

"It was brilliant to read all the diaries and I was particularly impressed with the children's capacity to empathise with refugees or people in their plight. It was clear that the events of Tuesday, September 11, and the subsequent war had an effect on the way they were able to write about this situation."

Nine schools took part in the competition, which was open to children aged between 10 and 16.

There were two winners from each school, who also received prizes. Every child who entered will be given a pen.

The Anne Frank Exhibition opens to the public on Saturday, January 5, and will run until Tuesday, January 29.