CHILDREN from a local school have been given the chance to visit all corners of the planet – through a virtual headset.

Pupils from St George’s Church of England Academy in Middleton St George are the latest to take part in Google Expeditions.

The children got to explore a range of sights from the Great Barrier Reef and the rainforest, to Egypt and the moon.

Year Six teacher Mrs Cox said: “The children were so excited – they have been see places they are likely to never visit in their lifetime.

“It really gives them a better understanding of the topics we are covering in the classroom.”

Pupil Amy Bradford said: “It has been great fun – I got to see things I have never seen before."

Google are aiming to take 20,000 pupils in the North-East in virtual reality school trips as part of their Expeditions programme.

Sundar Pichai, chief executive of Google, said: “We have already received feedback from thousands of teachers in the UK and they believe Expeditions can create excitement to complement traditional teaching methods.