PUPILS at a Stourbridge school have raised a staggering £31,000 in three years after taking to heart the plight of youngsters in Sri Lanka, whose lives were devastated by the 2004 tsunami in the Indian Ocean.

The students at Redhill School have thrown themselves into raising cash for a new school building in the Beruwela district of the island since their deputy head teacher saw the need for it while on holiday there three years ago.

Construction of the new Moragalla Junior School is now well under way and a party of 25 students and four teachers from Redhill have just returned from a visit to Sri Lanka to see for themselves what their hard-earned cash is paying for.

"We are very proud and thrilled with our students' achievement - they have really taken this school to heart," said Redhill assistant head teacher Martyn Orton.

"They have raised an amazing amount and pupils have shown a lot of initiative in the events they have organised."

Among the Stourbridge pupils' efforts were a ‘Redhill's Got Talent’ event last autumn and a charity football match hosted by Lye Town FC, which brought in £1,000.

Three girls - Zofia Newton, Hannah Richardson and Kim Roberts - collected another £1,000 when they went busking in Stourbridge town centre.

The trio were among the party that recently visited Moragalla Junior School.

"Mufti" days and coin collections have raised another £9,000.

The walls and roof of the new school are now in place - but Redhill is continuing its effort, aiming to raise another £12,000 in the next year to complete the building and provide much-needed equipment, such as books, stationery and computers.

Stourbridge News:

A sign outside the new school in Sri Lanka shows the help being given by Redhill pupils.

The project began after deputy head teacher, Chris McGrail was on holiday in Sri Lanka and the manager of her hotel put her in touch with the principal of Moragalla Juniors.

During their week-long visit to the new school, the Redhill students worked with the Sri Lankan children in their English, science and music lessons.

They had a rousing reception, with the Moragalla pupils putting on a procession in their honour, wearing colourful costumes and showing off their hand-decorated bicycles.

There was a game of cricket in front of the new building and each Redhill student paired up with a Moragalla pupil to combine artistic skills from their cultures to create a montage reflecting the partnership.