Chess webinars

Starting in November 2025, CSC will be running a series of free chess webinars. These are aimed at children aged 8-13 who know the basic rules of chess and are ready to take the next steps towards learning tactics and strategies. The webinars will be led by Sean Marsh, Chief Trainer for CSC, whose sessions are always fun and engaging.

There will be three levels of webinars:

Beginners: Tuesdays at 5pm or Wednesdays at 6pm. Suitable for children who know the basic rules of chess (rating under 900).

Intermediate: Tuesdays at 6pm or Thursdays at 5pm. Suitable for children who can spot simple threats, have a basic understanding of chess tactics (forks, pins, skewers) and easy checkmates, e.g. two rooks versus a king (rating between 900 and 1100).

Advanced: Wednesdays at 5pm or Thursdays at 6pm. Suitable for children who have a strong understanding of chess tactics (forks, pins, skewers) and understand standard checkmates, e.g. king and rook vs king (rating between 1100 and 1300).

The webinars start in the week beginning Monday 17th November 2025 and continue for four weeks.

To make the most of the webinars, your child will need a CSC ChessKid account. ChessKid is an online platform that allows children to play and learn chess in a safe environment. You can register for a free account here. If your child already has a ChessKid account, please create a fresh account for use in our webinar programme.

If you are not sure which level of webinar your child should join, please ask them to play a few games on ChessKid and check their Fast Chess rating. If you are still not sure, your child could join an intermediate webinar in Week 1 and then move up, down, or stay depending on the experience.

Chess Masterclasses

At the end of the webinar series, some participants will be invited to attend a series of ten online masterclasses starting in January. To be considered for one of these places, children must have a CSC ChessKid account (see above). Places will be awarded on the basis of attendance at webinars and completion of weekly homework tasks on ChessKid. Places are only available for children attending a state school in the UK (Year 3 – 8).

Registration for Webinars

Please register your child for the webinars by completing the form below. You will be emailed a link to the webinars in November. If you have any questions about the webinar programme, please email Vincent Sagues.