A TEAM of volunteers from Cumbria and Lancashire have been on a mission to Africa to help sick children and help open a school.

With members from Kirkby Lonsdale and Carnforth, the group travelled to Uganda where they offered free medical clinics and oversaw the opening of a primary school.

The 19-strong team went to Bombo, just north of Kampala, with Christian Restoration Ministries International charity Children of Hope - a small Ugandan-based organisation headed up in the UK by director Juliet Burd.

The charity aims to break the cycle of poverty by empowering children through education, healthcare and vocational training.

Running for nearly 10 years, Children of Hope centres around a child sponsorship programme which currently sees 250 children receive an education, a hot meal every day, and regular health checks and medical care.

Along with that, medical clinics are provided to those rural communities that would otherwise not be able to access healthcare services.

During the visit last month, the group of five doctors, two nurses, a physiotherapist and an optician was aided by 10 extra volunteers.

They ran 10 clinics in churches and treated around 2,500 people, offering free medication, mosquito nets, dental kits and washable sanitary kits for girls.

"There were queues of about 200-300 people at the clinics who had come at around 5am," said Juliet, of Kirkby Lonsdale, who teaches part time art Kendal's Queen Katherine School. "It's really important because these people don't have the money for medical care, or for transport to get there."

And in a country where, despite improvement, only 82 per cent of children attend primary school, the helpers pitched in with painting and preparations to get a brand new facility ready for opening on February 2.

Welcoming 50 children through its doors, the plan for the future is to expand - giving more and more children the chance to learn.

"We want to provide a quality school and education," added Juliet, who worked with pupils in Kendal to raise funds for the project.

For most of the youngsters, who come from the local area, this will be their first experience in a school.

The charity currently runs two trips to the area a year but with more doctors on board the charity hopes to spend more time helping the poverty stricken people.

In the meantime, Juliet said teachers on the ground are running the school and a team of medical professionals continue to provide healthcare.

More information about the charity and how to get involved can be found online at www.crmi-childrenofhope.org.uk