IT WILL be thumbs up for student Emily Ramsdale this Easter as she tries to raise funds for a worthy cause.

Former Queen’s Park High School pupil Emily is planning to join students from across the country to take part in a sponsored charity event called the Moroccan Hitch.

Emily, 21, is in her second year of a psychology degree at the University of Manchester.

She said: “I went to Morocco during my gap year so am quite keen to go back.

“I am planning to raise funds by hosting a special Moroccan evening for friends and family.”

Emily, whose parents live in Curzon Park, will need to raise £350 for the charity Link Community Development (LCD) before she can start the challenge which will involve hitchhiking from the UK, through France and Spain, and finally reaching Morocco.

LCD is a group of partner organisations based in Ethiopia, Ghana, Malawi, South Africa, Uganda and the UK. It works in schools, communities, and local government in some of the poorest areas of sub-Saharan Africa to improve the quality of education received by over 600,000 children.

The charity also establishes partnerships between UK and African schools, allowing the children to learn directly from each other and promoting understanding between the cultures.

The money raised by participants in the Moroccan Hitch will help provide basic equipment to schools and fund literacy training sessions and HIV/AIDS education sessions.

To support Emily visit www.justgiving.com/emilyramsdale.