CONDITIONS at Nepalese survivors’ camps are sparse but bearable, according to people from Oxfordshire still trapped in the country.

Earlier this week, several young people from the county contacted their families to say they were safe after Saturday’s earthquake.

Among them was Laurence Gerhardt, 24, from Wolvercote, who was travelling with friends to celebrate completing his degree in American Studies at Sussex University.

He and a friend from The Cherwell School, Joe Butchers, are currently in a camp in Dhunche, within the Langtang National Park in the Rasuwa region.

Laurence’s parents were informed of his whereabouts on Monday and he called again yesterday. His mother Sue, a psychotherapist, said: “Someone has a mobile phone functioning. He’s in this army camp, waiting to be airlifted out. They haven’t promised that but it’s the next thing.

“He’s relatively ok. There’s water and some food.”

She said he plans to compile a list of names of the 12 Britons in the camp.

The group have one phone between them which is currently switched off, but they were able to use solar power from a house to charge it.

Mrs Gerhardt expressed some frustration with the slowness of rescue efforts: “Other people from other nationalities have been rescued: Japanese people, Israelis and Indians, but the British don’t seem to be doing very much. That’s a concern.

“I have tried to contact the British Embassy.

“We would really like them to be getting on with it now.”

Oxfam has stepped up its effort to help an initial 350,000 victims of the earthquake in Nepal, providing clean water, toilets and shelter.

The Cowley-based charity is now working in four openair sites in the Kathmandu Valley.

Charity workers are linking with other agencies to provide clean water to 16 open-air sites set up by the Government of Nepal, and are providing food and shelter while expanding operations outside Kathmandu.

Oxfam volunteer Shekhou Khada, 23, has been loading latrines delivered to the Tundikhel IDP camp in Kathmandu.

One of 500 volunteers trained to react in the event of an earthquake, he said: “I became a volunteer because I wanted to serve my community.”

Oxfam has so far raised more than £500,000 from the UK public but said that more funding was needed.

The death toll, which currently stands at above 5,000, is expected to rise.