A primary school in Red Lodge needs to raise in excess of £10,000 to be able to take students to Brazil so they can represent the UK in an international robotic competition.

Eight Year 6 pupils at St Christopher’s CEVC Primary School have the opportunity to travel to the South American country after performing well at the UK National CoSpace Championship hosted by BT Education.

The championship, which took place at BT headquarters at Martlesham Heath in March, saw three of the teams from St Christopher’s take second, third and fourth place in their age categories.

Andrew Severy, ICT co-ordinator at the school, said as a result they had been invited to represent the UK in the RoboCup Junior International Championship 2014 in Joaoa Pessoa, Brazil, in July.

But he said the school needed to raise in excess of £10,000 to make the “trip of a lifetime” possible for the eight girls, as well as two members of staff.

He said: “We are actually seeking sponsorship or funding. It’s a great opportunity for the girls to broaden their horizons.”

The students have been using CoSpace software, which has only been in this country since September, to program robots to compete against each other.

Mr Severy explained the championship at Martlesham Heath did not involve real robots, adding it was like Robot Wars, but non-contact.

To donate to help make the trip to Brazil happen, call Mr Severy or headteacher Kathryn McMurtary on 01638 750342.