A group of students from a township school in South Africa enjoyed a fun day of activities at Lusty Glaze Beach on Wednesday (30 April) during a ‘once in a lifetime trip’ to Cornwall.

The children from Kasselsvlei School in Cape Town, many of whom had never left their township before, visited Cornwall last week as part of an ongoing sports and cultural exchange programme with Newquay Tretherras School.

During their day at Lusty Glaze, the 30 children aged between 14 and 18 experienced a number of activities organised by The Adventure Centre.

The Lusty Glaze centre has a close working relationship with Tretherras School, so it was keen to help out when it was asked to accommodate the special overseas visitors.

Kasselsvlei School is a township school in a deprived community with high unemployment and severe gang, crime and drug problems. Despite their underprivileged backgrounds, the school produces many of South Africa’s finest young rugby players and the team competes at the highest level with the most affluent schools in the Western Cape Province.

The link with Tretherras was formed during the Newquay school’s first sports tour of South Africa in 2003 and the two teams have remained in touch ever since.

Richard Higginson, head of sport at Tretherras, commented: “The first school we played and were hosted by were Kasselsvlei who gave us a very warm welcome, a lesson in rugby and a very hospitable stay and introduction to South Africa.

“This kind of exchange has huge benefits for both schools to experience and share different cultures, play the worldwide game of rugby and make new friends. It’s great to be able to return the hospitality they showed us when we visited South Africa.”

The tourists got a taste of Cornish beach culture during their visit to Lusty Glaze. The children threw themselves into the activities and experienced the Snakes and Ladders vertical assault course, cliff abseiling and zip wire rides. They also enjoyed a spot of beach rugby, followed by lunch at Lusty Glaze Restaurant.

Kasselsvlei School’s head teacher Ronald Bantom, who accompanied the children on the trip, commented: “It’s been a real eye-opener for the children to come here. Where they are from they face many social and economic challenges. It’s good for them to experience a different side to life and see that instead of getting involved in bad activities there are alternatives open to them.

“At Kasselsvlei we believe in holistic education. As well as their school studies, we look at extra-curricula activities. Many of the children are passionate about rugby and if they show they are good enough we provide the environmental conditions for their development.

“Rugby generates opportunities, including trips like these. We want them to see that there are much, much better things to do in life than get involved with drugs or crime. Hopefully they will go back to their communities, share their experiences and help bring about change.”

Tracey Griffiths, head of centre at Lusty Glaze, said: “It was an absolute pleasure to welcome such a bright and enthusiastic bunch of students to our beach. They all had tremendous fun and behaved impeccably – they are a credit to their school.”

Following their visit to Cornwall, the Kasselsvlei squad will this week travel to London to meet players from top rugby team Saracens RFC.