RECORD-BREAKING Hampshire mountaineer Rhys Jones was inundated with congratulatory cards when he paid a visit to his old school to tell pupils about his adventures.

Rhys, 20, took an assembly at Bartley Junior School to show the pupils slides of his triumphant trek to the summit of Mount Everest.

The climb saw Rhys enter the record books as the youngest person ever to conquer the highest peaks on all seven continents.

"The kids were great and they seemed to have been following my climbs in different ways. They all made big congratulations cards with messages in them, which was a really nice gesture," said Rhys, who has become a hero for pupils.

Eleven-year-old Peter Barnicoat from Minstead wrote: "I think Rhys's adventure was amazing and he must have been determined to get to the top. I cannot believe from his time at Bartley he wanted to climb Everest."

The seven to 11-year-old pupils quizzed Rhys about his adventures and were particularly keen to find out about frostbite and how it feels to be on top of the world.

"It certainly made an impact on them," added Rhys, who is set to give more talks over the summer to help promote his charity, Youth Unlimited.

Year 6 teacher Peter Floyd said: "Rhys is a Bartley legend. The assembly must have overran by about 15 minutes."