Surplus equipment from Lancashire schools is being donated to high schools in Pakistan.

Lancashire county councillor Terry Burns and headteacher of Marsden Heights Community College, Mike Tull, came up with the idea after visiting two high schools in Jaurah.

Mr Tull had previously twinned his college with them and was invited to visit by their mayor.

Coun Burns said: "We couldn't believe it. The kids didn't have tables or chairs as you'd expect to see in a school.

"They were using the floor as chairs and their knees as desks.

"All the kids were very well mannered, very friendly and very disciplined but had very little in terms of facilities.

"When we got back to Lancashire we thought that maybe we could use the surplus furniture and school equipment we will have from the Buildings Schools for Future project, rather than see the stuff go to a landfill site, as all the schools in Burnley and Pendle will be getting state-of-the-art equipment and brand new furniture.

"They didn't want to put the old furniture back in the new schools."

Thousands of tables and chairs have already been sent to the school following the revamp of secondary education in Burnley and Pendle under the £250million Building Schools For The Future programme.

Furniture was also given by St Mary's and Blackburn Colleges.

Now County Coun Burns is hoping to get more items shipped over to other schools in Jaurah by July.

Mr Tull said: "It makes a massive difference in the way they could be taught just by providing a few chairs and tables."

Coun Burns estimated the containers would cost £1,600 each to ship from Lancashire and said he hoped local businesses might like to sponsor the project.

He said: "It's a fantastic project and we're really going to make it work. It won't cost taxpayers anything.

"There are so many things we can send over there as we have no need for them.

"Obviously, any other schools in Lancashire can have things they need but there will be a lot of surplus after that.

"This is the best form of recycling in the world. We've seen for ourselves just how underprivileged the child-ren were and they were so delighted when we said we would try our best to get more stuff over."