MORE than 20 students are to spend their summer renovating a school in Namibia.

The 21 teenagers from Durham Johnston School, which itself is undergoing a £25m rebuild, will help at a primary school in the southwest African nation's Karas region.

They will lay floors, install toilets, paint walls and fit insulation.

Each must raise £3,500 to finance their trip and buy building materials.

The project is part of World Challenge, which gives young people to chance to do volunteer work.

Christine Lugsden, a teacher at Durham Johnston School who will accompany the students, said: "We will spend 30 days in Namibia, and it won't be a holiday by any stretch of the imagination.

We will be doing all we can to help improve the school building, as basically all they have is a tin shack."

Student Emily Wright said: "I think it's going to be really exciting. I've taken on extra paper rounds and we held a Stars in the Eyes fundraising night and sold tea and coffee at parents' evenings to help pay for the trip."

The group leaves for Namibia in July. To support the project, call the school on 0191-384-3887.