A TRAINEE teacher from Oxford is hoping to give something back by taking his classroom skills to Africa.

Neil Green, 22, of Alexandra Road, Botley, is planning to spend two months teaching at a school and pre-school in Ghana - and needs to raise an additional £300 to pay for the trip.

Mr Green, who is on a teacher training course at Oxford Brookes University, said: "Over the past few years I have dealt with a number of serious circumstances that have affected my outlook on life. My mother had a brain tumour and my grandmother died.

"While these things have been happening in my life, I have been given a lot of help from various people and I just want to give something back."

Mr Green will be working with charity Volunteer in Ghana to help children in the city of Kumasi. He said he chose to go to Ghana as it seemed to be among those countries most in need.

There are 60 children with places at the school he will be working at, plus at least 300 more in the area who have nowhere to study.

He said: "The money they have to spend on education per head is so low compared to what we have, it's just a completely different world.

"The children out there have a desire to learn and a desire to get out of the situation they're in. They can't do that without the education."

Mr Green will be working with local teachers and, as well as teaching the children, he hopes to help teach some of them how to teach themselves.

He will be living in a house with a local family during his stay in the West African country.

The trip will cost £1,300, about £1,000 of which he has already collected, but Mr Green is hoping to raise even more to spend on items for the school, such as pens and pencils, paper, and books.

He is also hoping to take some football shirts to give to pupils as gifts. He said: "It can make a huge difference. I have knowledge to share with these children and help them to develop better teaching strategies, helping the community not just while I'm out there but afterwards as well."

Anyone who would like to Mr Green raise money can contact him by email at 6063570@brookes.ac.uk