YOUNG people at County Durham schools are showing off their friendship links to a worldwide audience.

A series of four posters on the theme "making links, making friends, making sense of the world" will go on show for two months at Durham Tees Valley airport from Monday.

The posters will tell tourists and business visitors how pupils have teamed up with young people from 44 nations.

Durham County Council's international officer Brian Stobie said: "The posters will give a little flavour of the wonderful things our schools do to help youngsters understand what life is like for young people in different countries.

"They show primary, special and secondary schools with their partners in three different countries while a fourth poster highlights all the nations linked to our schools.

"The posters are bright and colourful with lots of smiling faces and will be seen by thousands of people who use the airport at this time of the year from across Britain and by international visitors.

"Our schools now have links with 44 different countries that we know of. It is really something to be proud of."

The posters feature St. Bede's RC Comprehensive, Lanchester, with their partners at Costa Viana, in Brazil; Durham Trinity with Viano do Costelo, in Portugal, and Our Lady and St Thomas RC Primary, Willington, with Kivulini Primary School, in Tanzania.