A TOUCH of Latin American style has brought a dash of colour to a residential school.

Breckenbrough School, near Thirsk, has been playing host to two volunteers under the American Field Service scheme, which places people from Central and South America with schools across the country.

Brian Mendez, 25, from Guatemala and Luciano Lopez, 22, from Brazil, have spent the past six months helping staff, with Brian working alongside the art teacher and Luciano pitching in with outdoor pursuits.

Brian has been brightening up the school with a series of murals, including about 20 Pokemon characters and Michael Schumacher's Ferrari.

Liz Westmoreland, a member of the care team at the independent Quaker school for boys with emotional and behavioural problems, said: "It has made a big difference having them here.

"The boys get the chance to learn about a different culture, and the volunteers get to practise their English.

"The only problem is whenever we get someone from Brazil they keep hoping we will get a really good footballer and the two we have had so far haven't been interested in football."

She said they were looking for host families in the Northallerton and Thirsk areas for new volunteers, for five months from September. Contact the school on (01845) 587238.