STAFF from a Keighley school who travelled to Sri Lanka as part of a school exchange programme have praised their hosts for providing them with an amazing experience.

Art teacher Carla Thompson and business manager Farzana Azad from Holy Family Catholic School spent 10 days visiting Matara Central College in southern Sri Lanka.

They observed and took part in lessons, shared their experiences of the British education system and toured local sights including temples, an elephant sanctuary, a Dutch fortress and the Hummanaya blowhole.

Mrs Thompson said: "We feel so lucky to have had the opportunity do this and to go somewhere so different.

"Our hosts were so accommodating and everyone was amazingly friendly.

"The class sizes at the school there are huge – 40 to 50 to a class and not much space. But the families really push their kids to do well."

Mrs Azad said: "It was great to see how the teachers there transfer knowledge to their students with very little resources.

"They do an excellent job and some of those students are going onto medical college."

She added that the region had been successfully rebuilt since the devastating 2004 tsunami, noting that the local Sri Lankans were resilient and stoical about the difficulties they face.