A student from Oakworth will be on top of the world when he completes his own Millennium project this summer.

Matt Wood is planning to celebrate 2000 by trekking to the roof of Africa in a bid to raise thousands of pounds for disadvantaged children.

The 22-year-old, who is studying architecture at Portsmouth University and is currently on a placement with Saltaire-based architects Halliday Clark, is now busy preparing to climb Africa's highest mountain in June. The ten-day adventure will take Matt and a group of other fundraisers from around the country to the summit of Tanzania's Mount Kilimanjaro, almost 20,000 feet above sea level.

He has already had to fork out several hundred pounds to finance the cost of the trip but has also undertaken to raise a further £2,200 for charity. The sponsored trek is being organised by the Youth Hostels Asso-ciation with proceeds benefiting the development of hostels and the organisation's Give Us a Break scheme.

In a bid to help him reach his £2,200 target, Matt is writing to request sponsorship from local businesses. He is also planning his own Three Peaks challenge this year which will see him climbing Ben Nevis, Snowdon and Scafell - the UK's highest peaks - all within 24 hours.

Says Matt: "I decided to do the Kilimanjaro trip as a kind of challenge and adventure for myself for the Millennium. But it's for such a worthwhile cause as well - children are our future and if we can give those who wouldn't otherwise be able to afford it a holiday or short break then that's really important.

"I've done quite a bit of travelling before but never anything like this.

Anyone wishing to sponsor him should ring 648157.

Converted for the new archive on 30 June 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.