THE latest batch of Filipino nurses to arrive in the North-East may be already feeling the cold but they are looking forward to supporting their families back home.

Fifty English-speaking nurses from the Philippines have been recruited by the trust which runs the University Hospital of North Durham.

They follow in the footsteps of 59 Filipinos who were hired by North Tees and Hartlepool NHS Trust earlier this year.

Some of the first group of 18 nurses - who will start work today - talked about their reasons for coming to the UK.

For most of the Filipinos the main motivation is money.

They can earn three times what they are paid back home and much of the money is sent back to help extended families.

But it is not easy to uproot yourself and move thousands of miles, said Reisl Flores, who left her three-year-old daughter behind.

"It was a hard decision for me but the benefits of being here outweigh the homesickness," she said.

Digna Garcia, who left a four-year-old boy and nine-year-old girl behind, said that they could not believe how nice Durham was compared to their homeland.

"There is no pollution, it is very clean and you can hear the birds sing," said Digna.

Reisl, a specialist intensive care nurse, said she was "overwhelmed" at the modern technical equipment at the £97m hospital.

Karen Little, director of nursing at the North Durham trust, praised the high quality of the Filipino recruits.

All of them are university educated, all have at least two years experience and some have been working at ward sister level.

"The nurses are all keen to start working on the wards and have been looking forward to meeting their new colleagues and to get to know their patients," she said.

The Filipinos have been learning to understand local slang and weekly Roman Catholic masses will be held at the hospital specially for them, although everyone else is welcome to take part.

The nurses will be allocated "buddies" to help them fit in.

At the end of their two-year contracts they will have the option to extend their stay, she said.

The trust mounted a recruitment drive in the Philippines after repeated UK advertising failed to fill vacant places.