Press Release
Kent & East Sussex pupils to represent England at The Global Peace Games
September 2017
TWENTY key stage 3 pupils from Kent and East Sussex will represent England at 2017 The Global Peace Games in Belgium from September 17 to 22.
Hosted by the Peace Village in Messines, the event will bring young people across Europe together with the aim of creating peace makers of the future.
The National Children’s Football Alliance (NCFA) selected two schools that participated in The Peace Fields Project and twinned their playing fields, with Flanders Peace Fields. 20 young peace ambassadors from The Abbey School, Faversham, Kent and Chailey School, Lewes, East Sussex, are taking part in the highly prestigious event which commemorates The First World War and celebrates peace, through play. The GPGs takes place over The United Nations, International Day of Peace, 21st September.
Part funded by the European Union, the games will provide a platform for the young ambassadors to help form and lay the foundations for an annual GPGs for schools and clubs to twin their respective playing fields with Flanders Peace Field, site of the World War One Christmas Truces when German and Allied soldiers stepped out of their trenches and momentarily escaped the horror of war by playing football with a ball and jackets for goalposts.
Pupils from England, Belgium and Italy will visit a number of significant battle sites and take part in international games and forums, debating the role of sport at home, in the community and at war.
NCFA director Ernie Brennan said: “This is a once in a lifetime experience for young people to help form a lasting legacy in the 100 years commemoration. Playing football games on the most poignant field in the world will inspire young peace makers of the future and we should never forget the essence of playing football in its simplest form.”
Schools interested in taking part in the Global Peace Games need to complete the Peace Field Project (PFP) which twins their designated area of play with Flanders Peace Fields. The PFP enables young people and communities to learn about their heritage, which the centenary commemorations provide, through engagement in a comprehensive programme of activities, culminating in a commemoration event where the school playing fields will be designated as Peace Fields.
For more information about the Global and Peace Games and The Peace Fields Project and how your school can twin their playing areas with Flanders Peace Field visit www.childrensfootballalliance.com
Notes for Editors
- The NCFA was established in 2008 to enhance children’s development through the medium of football by way of the sharing and dissemination of information and the practical application of the knowledge acquired. childrensfootballalliance.com
- The NCFA’s core aim is to protect childhood through play and to promote and advance children’s unalienable right to engage in football play appropriate to their age and needs. One of its core objectives is to promote and spread best practice through practical application and football for fun workshops. Current NCFA projects include: National Children’s Football Week; International Children’s Football Week; Summer off the Streets and the Family Skills Project in partnership with Family Lives http://familylives.org.uk/
- Interviews with Ernie Brennan (NCFA Director) + 00 44 (0)7813082584. Paul Cooper (NCFA National Projects Director) + 00 44 (0)7875283093.
- Backgroundinformation: http://www.childrensfootballalliance.com/FOOTBALL_PEACE_working_group.html
For more information please contact Ernie Brennan (07813 082584) or email erniebrennan@thecfa.co.uk
http://www.childrensfootballalliance.com
National Children’s Football Alliance
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