A Cambridgeshire headteacher retiring after 17 years is marking her departure by taking to the skies in a wing walk.
Jo Phillips, who is leaving Wyton on the Hill Primary School near Huntingdon, will be strapped to the top of a biplane at Imperial War Museum Duxford on July 18 at 3.30pm.
She will be joined by Gill Angel, RAF community development officer from RAF Wyton.
The duo have launched a fundraising page and aim to raise £1,500 for the school’s ICT equipment, including laptops, tablets, and software.
So far, they have already raised more than £400.
Ms Phillips said: "For me there's two things that I'm really terrified of: I'm absolutely terrified of heights, and have been from a very young age because I fell down the stairs and broke my leg, and also I'm quite a nervous flyer.
"Leaving headship is quite a big thing for me after 17 years and it'll be quite a big change and a big wrench to leave something that I've really loved doing.
"I might as well do something which absolutely terrifies me, because leaving my job and leaving teaching behind is quite terrifying."
Wyton on the Hill Primary School, located next to RAF Wyton in Cambridgeshire, shares a long-standing partnership with the base.
Ms Phillips said it felt fitting to do something connected to the base, which has been an important part of her working life.
She said: "The children have been amazing; some of them have started a loom band company and they have made a donation already to my wing walk and that was brilliant.
"I wanted them to know how important they've been to me and that it will be difficult for me to leave.
"I wanted to do something big to say thank you to them and to try to leave a legacy of some IT equipment which is always hard to find!"
Ms Angel, who has wing walked before, said: "RAF Wyton and the school have always had a close relationship.
"Supporting Jo on this felt like a natural extension of that."
Ms Phillips' last day as headteacher at Wyton will be the final day of the summer term on July 17, and she will complete her wing walk the very next day.
However, she said that the prospect of the wing walk is actually providing a welcome distraction from the thought of finally leaving her job.
Ms Phillips said: "I don't know which bit I'm dreading most, the last day of school when I have to say goodbye to the children, or standing on the wings of a plane.
"I think probably saying goodbye to the children will be harder."
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