Three of the UK’s highest peaks have been conquered by a group of Maltese who are collecting funds in aid of children with no access to education.

The eight climbed the Ben Nevis in Scotland, Scafell Pike in England and Snowdon in Wales in 33 hours, completing the challenge on Sunday at 1pm despite unusually high temperatures that took them by surprise.

The Maltese team were taking part in the Costa Three Peaks - an annual fundraiser in which Costa Coffee employees, suppliers and friends raise money.

All the money collected will be channelled to a foundation that helps to support coffee-growing communities around the world by building schools and providing access to education.

To date, the Costa Foundation has supported over 72 school projects in nine countries. This year, the funds will help with building a school in Ethiopia.

The Maltese team has been gearing up for this challenge for over four months, trekking between 20 and 45 kilometres at least once a week.

Speaking to Times of Malta as soon as they completed the challenge, team leader Yanis Azzopardi said that most of the training in Malta took part at night so that they would get used to trekking in cooler temperatures.

“The most difficult part was the unexpected climate conditions, with the average temperature reaching 29°C. The heat during the descent was a real killer,” he said.

“I will definitely do this again, and again, and again. We're changing children's lives, one school at a time.”

Those interested in financially supporting the Costa Coffee Malta team can do so through a bank account called The Coffee Company Malta Ltd, using these details: BIC Code MMEBMTMT; IBAN number MT03MMEB44 118000000011152014001; HSBC Bank Malta, and list 3 Peaks Challenge as transaction details.