Holyrood Event 28 March 2017 Presentations
Written by Jim Feenan on 08/08/2017
With thanks to Ross from Heart & Sound in Dunfermline who managed to record the whole of the evening’s presentations from our event at Holyrood, the home of the Scottish Government. This was a great opportunity to present to MSPs and our guests on the work The Fighting Chance Project (Scotland) and Carnegie Judo Club has been doing in a number of secondary and primary schools in Dunfermline, Glenrothes and Larbert to work with disengaged or disadvantaged young people using judo as the means to help improve their academic, relationship or health and wellbeing outcomes. All done under the banner of “Giving Attainment a Fighting Chance” we hope to tie into the Scottish Government’s challenge of closing the attainment gap and Getting It Right For Every Child (GIRFEC).
A key part of our message is that judo as a sport and physical activity ticks all of the boxes required of the Significant Aspects of Learning in Physical Education but it is the emphasis on the judo values (Respect, Sincerity, Friendship, Politeness, Courage, Honour, Modesty, Self-Respect and Self-Control) that really make the difference.
We hope to post video clips of each part of the evening but would like to thank once again Jenny Gilruth, our sponsoring MSP for Mid Fife and Glenrothes, and key note speaker Shirley-Anne Somerville MSP for Dunfermline and Minister for Further Education, Higher Education and Science for their support and enthusiasm for what we do.
Charlie Watt, the Chairman of FCPS, replies to the MSP’s introductions. Jim Feenan, Director of FCPS, presents the high level infographics on what has been achieved so far through the work we do in the schools. Using judo as a means to engage with young people our measured outcomes tie neatly with the Scottish Government’s aims for closing the attainment gap by helping to improve academic performance, improve relationships and the individual’s awareness of their health and wellbeing. Jenny and Olivia give a very poignant testimonial on the benefits and difference that judo has made to them and their family. Iain Feenan lead the pupils from our participating schools in a short demonstration of the judo skills with the formal part of the evening concluding with the pupils being presented with certificates and red or yellow belts in recognition of the progress they have made in the Yellow Belt Challenge.
The short clip below is an extract Jim’s presentation when we talk about the importance of the Fighting Chance Project (Scotland) as a charity working in partnership with JudoScotland as the Scottish Governing Body (SGB) to deliver quality and award grades that are to the standards set by the SGB and British Judo Association.
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