TWO Alloa Academy pupils went on a trip to France to observe the centenary of a WWI battle where 18,000 Scots lost their lives.

Youngsters Kyle Gillespie and Lewis Kinney were amongst 72 S3 pupils representing each local authority in Scotland when they attended a service at Faubourgh d'Amiens Cemetery to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the Battle of Arras.

The service was conducted by the moderator of Scotland who saw a number of dignitaries in attendance alongside French schoolchildren as well.

Following the service, the youngsters laid poppy crosses on the graves of casualties as pipers played Flowers of the Forest.

The battle saw the highest concentration of Scottish troops fighting in a single battle during WWI with the average daily casualty rate at 4,076 – much higher than at the Somme or the Third Battle of Ypres.

Altogether around 159,000 lost their lives in the fighting, and about a third were Scottish.

In a join statement the pupils said: “The trip to Arras was [a] once in a life time opportunity and it was a real privilege to have been chose to represent Clackmannanshire.

“We found it very moving and the whole trip was a great learning experience. We know much more about not only the Battle of Arras, but WWI in general.

“We should never forget the tremendous sacrifice. People as young as us fought and died in this war – we stood at the grave of a 15-year-old soldier who had been killed in this war.”