IT'S a half-term with a difference for Ingleton Middle School's art teacher Chris Lackey, as he heads out to Uganda.

Mr Lackey will be spending his holiday working at a remote Ugandan Mission School.

His task is to help set up computers, some of which have been donated by Ingleton Middle School, but he will also work in the art department developing pupil's skills.

Established two years ago the link between the two schools enables pupils on both continents to discover more about each other's lives.

Pupils have been able to correspond as English is the official language in Uganda, with most Ugandans speaking English as well as a tribal language.

Mr Lackey, who has taught at Ingleton for 25 years, said: "The problem with the Dales schools is that they are rather isolated and so the pupils don't know much about what's going on in the rest of the world. For example, Uganda has the highest incidence of Aids and most of these kids in the school are orphans."

The Mission School is 50 miles from the airstrip at Antebi and while admitting to being slightly apprehensive, Mr Lackey says Uganda is "as safe as Africa goes".

He first visited Uganda in his student days back in 1971 and is interested to see how the country has changed.

"It won't be as prosperous now as it was then. Uganda has a border with Sudan and has taken in lots of refugees. It also has a border with Rwanda, where there was genocide, so had a great influx of people.

"I am looking forward to it, but I am slightly apprehensive safetywise, but I have had numerous jabs. It is something I have wanted to do for some time.

"The first three years of my 30 year teaching career where spent in Swaziland so it will be Africa revisited."

Staff hope there will be a return visit by staff from the Ugandan school to Ingleton next September.