SCHOOLS in County Durham have been urged to be more outward-looking and forge greater links across the globe.

The message emerged in an unlikely meeting between five head teachers from the Gambia in west Africa, and a former Durham pitman, who is now chairman of the county council.

Coun Alan Fenwick, an ex-Seaham miner who took the chain of office as county council chairman in May, greeted the visiting party, in its first ever excursion out of Africa.

Their week-long visit is part of a reciprocal exchange, initiated when several head teachers from the region, including Christine Coxon, of St Godric's RC Primary in Durham, travelled to the Gambia, in February.

Coun Fenwick exchanged mementoes at a reception with the Gambian delegation in the chairman's room at County Hall, this week.

He said: "I'm delighted to welcome our visitors to County Durham and I hope their stay will spur more schools to go global.

"A great many schools in the county already have links with other parts of the world, including India, Brazil and Ghana, but the more links we develop, the greater the opportunity for our children to understand different cultures and become global citizens."

Funded by the British Council and organised by Development Direct, the visit is part of an initiative called Just Like You, which aims to link children across the globe via a world health project.

Children decide on a health priority in their own community, investigate it and devise an action plan for dealing with it by changing behaviour.

In the Gambia there is a child-to-child learning technique passing advice and action plans between partner schools.

Schools in County Durham wishing to become involved in the project should contact the international office at County Hall on (0191) 383 3631.