A-LEVEL students in two South Lakeland schools will be given the chance to go on the trip of a lifetime as part of a cultural exchange competition with a school in Canada.

Thanks to the Windermere Catchment Restoration Programme, students from Windermere School and Lakes School, Troutbeck Bridge, will be given the chance to take part in an exchange programme with the Windermere Community School in British Columbia.

England’s longest lake has already twinned with its namesake in Canada’s British Columbia — where bears roam the shoreline.

But now three schools are taking part in a competition which will bring unique opportunities for stud-ents.

One winner each from the Lake District and Columbia River Valley will exchange places, each hosted by the local Rotary Club and be taken on a “very special” cultural journey.

Windermere Catchment Restoration Programme manager John Pinder, said it was all about raising awareness and developing the relationship with counterparts in Canada.

“This is a significant and unique initiative following links established by our Windermere mayor Bill Smith and British Columbia’s Gerry Taft during the lakes’ conference we hosted last year.

“We’re asking A-level students from Windermere and Lakes Schools, Cumbria, to join with peers from Windermere Community School, BC, to tell us how we can create a lake to be proud of.

“This can be done through words, film, art, photography, or whatever medium they like.

"We’ve had a very positive response from teachers and are grateful to Rotarians for making the exchange possible.”

The competition is expected to be rolled out during February and March and exchange visits will follow in the summer.

Windermere Catchment Restoration Programme, part of the Still Waters Partnership, is made up of the Environment Agency, Lake District National Park Authority, National Trust, United Utilities, Forestry Commission, Natural England, Cumbria Tourism and South Lakeland District Council.