INTREPID teachers Mariea Townsend and Linda Johnson are mounting their bid for a new school minibus by scaling Mount Kilimanjaro.

The pair, both teachers at Elms Bank Community High School in Whitefield, jet off next weekend (April 7) for Kenya. They aim to reach the 9,400 ft summit over Easter.

As Linda explained: "It's not the level of fitness that is the most important thing. It's whether you can combat the feelings of altitude sickness."

They hope to raise up to £6,000 towards a school minibus specially adapted for children in wheelchairs and the pair believe the cause will spur them on.

"Elms Bank has a growing number of children in wheelchairs. If you can take them out to show them things rather than just teaching about them in the classroom, lessons can be much more meaningful."

The expedition will be led by Linda's 20-year-old daughter and former Holy Cross pupil, Becky Johnson, who taught at a school on the slopes of Kilimanjaro.

Children at the Ripon Avenue school have raised around £200 for an orphanage in Kenya, which looks after abandoned street children from Nairobi.

The aim is to buy books and teaching equipment for the orphanage school.