TEN Barry students have described a charity school trip to Sri Lanka as a ‘life changing experience’, writes Luke James.

During the trip the Barry Comprehensive pupils taught English at a local school for two weeks.

Christopher Jones, James Arnold, Michael Walker, George Scott, Joe Hodgson, Luke Elworthy, Caelum Davies, Hannah Parker, Clara Danielson and Ben Callow took part in the trip, along with teachers Karen Walters, Rob Bourton and Julie Lander.

They returned home last month, after spending two weeks in Sri Lanka.

During the trip, which was organised in conjunction with the charity Help Lanka, the youngsters got up at 6am every day to teach English at a local school.

"The children loved our lessons and begged us to teach them!" said Christopher Jones.

The afternoons were spent helping out at an orphanage, a care home and a deaf and blind school.

"Experiencing these was eye-opening and life-changing," he added.

"It made me feel so lucky and made me appreciate home more."

George Scott, 17, also found the trip unforgettable.

"The most memorable part was the unbridled positivity, in the face of overwhelming reason to the contrary, of the children at the two orphanages,” he said.

Christopher Jones, 17, thought that the most challenging aspect of the trip was the heat.

"Teaching in a polo shirt and black trousers with shoes in 30 degrees heat was one of the main challenges!" he said.

The students organised sports matches, using equipment they had provided for the school, and also visited temples, held monkeys and rode elephants during the trip.

At the end of the fortnight, the pupils at the local school held a thank you concert for the Barry teenagers, with poetry and acting in English.

"It really showed how much their English had improved," said Michael Walker.

George Scott added: "When we left the school for the last time, there was a tangible sadness in each of us. We will never forget any of it."