SEVEN local volunteers have recently returned from a ten-week expedition to Ghana with the youth charity Raleigh International.

They were in a group of around 120 young people from the South-West who went to Ghana to help the people with basic health, education and environmental projects.

The six young members were Laurence Clarke and Ben Goodman, both 19, from Tavistock; Hannah Jones,18, from Peter Tavy; Ricky Dillon, 20, from Okehampton; Emma Kitely, 18, from Princetown; and Michael Yeoman, 19, from Gunnislake. Also in the party was Stuart Lord, from Okehampton, one of the charity's volunteer staff.

The aim of the projects was to give the volunteers an opportunity to live and work with Ghanaians and contribute to their communities.

Ricky was involved in building a nursery school in the northern region of Kpatinga. Around 200 children who used to have their lessons under a tree now have a new school.

Hannah helped to build pit latrines in Yarigu, in the upper east region, in just three weeks. There had previously been no toilets at the school for 200 pupils. They were unable to complete the work because of political unrest in the area, but it is expected that another charity will be able to do so in the near future.

At Ansaka in the western region Laurence and Emma joined in the construction of a visitor centre for the wildlife department.

Ben worked on a scheme to build wood stoves for isolated villages and on a bird survey in the country's largest national park, Digya.

Mr Lord was project manager for a 96 km trekking expedition with a group of volunteers in the Bui national park.

The party also had the opportunity to observe an African election, which passed off calmly and without incident, according to staff member Sarah Cossum from Exeter.

Raleigh is planning another expedition to Ghana for this year.