STUDENTS are getting ready for their trip of a lifetime when they will spend time in a Zulu village and trek trough African mountains.

Fifteen pupils from St Wilfrid's High School and Technology College, Blackburn, have got their bags packed ready for their journey to South Africa where they will spend four weeks taking part in a World Challenge Exhibition.

The group, led by teacher Julie Marshall, have been preparing for their challenge for more than a year and will finally set off on Friday.

In South Africa they will spend the first five days acclimatising before they move onto a Zulu village where they will learn about the traditional Zulu way of life.

They will then move onto the Rorke's Drift area where they will spend five days living and working in a rural school, contributing to the maths, English and science classes and playing sports with the Zulu children.

Then the pupils, aged 15-18, will head off for an eight-day, 100 kilometre trek in the Drakensberg Mountains before returning to Durban for sightseeing before setting off for home.

Each member of the group has had to raise more than £2,000 for the trip and they have spent months fundraising and appealing to local businesses for sponsorship.

Teacher Julie Marshall said: "This is a fabulous opportunity that the young people have worked extremely hard to make happen. It will be filled with new challenges and experiences that will enable them to develop skills that will stay with them for the rest of their lives."