Teams from Hays Travel and Intrepid have raised £15,000 for charity after climbing the highest mountain in North Africa.

On a trip sponsored by the Moroccan National Tourist Office last month, the group summited Mount Toubkal with the assistance of Intrepid guides and crew.  

The funds will go to the Hays Foundation, which helps young people from disadvantaged backgrounds reach their potential, and Education for All, a charity supported by the Intrepid Foundation that helps girls in the Atlas Mountains continue their education.  

Hays Chair Dame Irene Hays was so moved by the project during her visit that she pledged to support three girls from EFA and invited them to embark on a three-month internship at the company’s Sunderland headquarters.  

Dame Irene said: “It was a wonderful experience to be able to go along and support the team on this challenge. I am so proud of them all. It was also incredibly humbling and inspiring to see the work done at the Education for All project in the Atlas Mountains.

“I’m looking forward to welcoming three of the girls to Sunderland.” 

Intrepid MD EMEA Zina Bencheikh said the climbers smashed the original target of £5,000.

Another group of travel industry people took part in a Mount Toubkal climb at the weekend, this time for the G Trek For Good, with G Adventures and ABTA LifeLine, ahead of the ABTA conference, which is currently taking place in Marrakech.