Pupils from The John Lyon School in Middlesex are getting their shooting boots on this spring to raise funds for CLIC Sargent – the UK’s leading children’s cancer charity.

 

Twelve Year 9 pupils from The John Lyon School (JLS) coached 30 Year 5 & 6 pupils from St. George’s Primary School through a two-week mini 5-a-side tournament, and every kick will go a long way for children with cancer.

 

75% of the final total raised will be given to CLIC Sargent to provide ongoing support to children with cancer and their families while the remaining 25% will go straight back to St. George’s school.

 

The collaboration between JLS, an independent 11-18 boys’ day School in Harrow, and the nearby primary school, comes after the specially selected group of JLS boys spent the autumn and winter learning how to coach. The coaching lessons, led by JLS PE teacher, Arthur Brammer, are the first element in an innovative, new five-year Junior Football Organiser programme.

 

“We are really excited about this programme: we don’t know of anything else quite like it”, said Mr Brammer. “The aim is to get our keenest young sportsmen to take on some real responsibility at an early age, giving them the opportunity to develop valuable leadership, communication and organisation skills. Staging a tournament for St. George’s at our Sudbury Hill grounds was an excellent way for these boys to put their new coaching skills into practice and at the same time help out one of our local primary schools.”

 

Over the next two years, the same group will learn football refereeing skills and referee some internal house matches at the School. By the end of Year 11, they should have gained the nationally recognised FA level 1 referees’ qualification. They will then be able to referee weekend and holiday matches, including their school’s own fixtures.

 

In the Sixth Form, the group will receive intensive training towards the prestigious FA level 2 qualification. It is also planned to teach them cricket umpiring skills in the summer terms.

 

One of the JLS pupils involved, Kishen Patel, said: “The way we have been given responsibility to decide how the tournament was organised has been good.” His classmate, Warren Won, added: “We have been able to manage our own team and pass on our knowledge to them.”

 

JLS Headmaster Kevin Riley said: “We’ve been investing heavily in sport over the past few years and the Junior Football Organiser programme is a tremendously exciting development, devised by our own PE department.

 

“As a day School for local boys, JLS has always valued its links with the local community, so it’s great that the programme has given us this opportunity to support St George’s. On a personal note, it’s also good to be involved with CLIC Sargent again: CLIC originated in Bristol and I knew it well during my many years as a teacher and headmaster in that city.”

 

Kick for Children with Cancer is a UK wide initiative organised by CLIC Sargent and supported by Chelsea FC. Chelsea captain and CLIC Sargent Ambassador John Terry said: “We are delighted to support this year’s launch of the Kick for Children with Cancer campaign. It’s a great way to encourage kids to get out onto the pitch this summer and we hope that as many schools and clubs as possible will be signing up to take part.”

 

Fellow Ambassador and Chelsea goalkeeper Petr Cech added: “Not only will taking part in Kick for Children with Cancer improve the fitness and health of the kids taking part, it will also benefit the 10 families each day who find out that their child has cancer.”

 

This is Kick for Children with Cancer’s fourth consecutive year. Last year, 84,000 children took part in 617 events throughout the country, raising £105,000.

 

For more information, or to register to take part in Kick for Children with Cancer, call the CLIC Sargent National Events team on 08451 20 22 32 or log onto: www.clicsargent.org.uk/football.