What we do

How can chess help your pupils?

Chess is an effective and affordable educational intervention, promoting key academic and social skills that children will use throughout their lives. The game helps them to think logically and solve problems, it develops sportsmanship and resilience and it teaches children to plan ahead and take responsibility for their actions.

Open to anyone regardless of gender, ethnicity, faith or disability, chess has also been positively linked with academic performance; see our research page (pending) for details of this emerging field. However, it has all-but disappeared from state schools and especially from deprived areas - which is exactly where it can have the most benefit.

How can CSC help your school?

We work exclusively in state schools and give priority to schools in the most disadvantaged areas. CSC’s unique approach is to run chess lessons to full classes of children during the school day. This ensures our programme in fully inclusive and all children gain access to the social and educational benefits of learning chess. Children learn the game over 30 weeks, taught by one of our trained tutors (all with enhanced DBS clearance). Our bespoke curriculum assumes no prior knowledge of chess and progresses from the laws of the game to foundational tactics and strategy. Our lessons foster mathematical skills, cognitive function, and logical thought, as well as developing a child’s self-esteem and resilience. 

Your school will receive all the necessary equipment (including chess sets, our curriculum, online accounts, workbooks, and other learning aids), free training for staff and entry to school activity days at the annual London Chess Classic Schools’ Festival and ChessFest.

How can your school get involved?

Over the past 14 years Chess in Schools and Communities has supported over 2,700 schools with lessons, clubs, equipment, and training. If you would like to discuss how we could work with your school, please complete our Join Us form and we will be in touch.