Wolverhampton MP co-hosts chess tournament for local schools
Warinder Juss, Member of Parliament for Wolverhampton West, co-hosted a successful schools chess tournament last week in partnership with Chess in Schools and Communities (CSC), bringing together young players from across the area.
The event, held at The Royal School Wolverhampton, saw eight local schools compete, with the host school emerging victorious after a day of high-quality matches.
The tournament highlighted the growing momentum behind chess in education, as well as its wider benefits for young people. Pupils demonstrated not only strong gameplay but also sportsmanship, with each match beginning and ending respectfully. Teachers and organisers noted how events like this help build confidence, concentration, and critical thinking skills among participants.
Warinder Juss MP, Member of Parliament for Wolverhampton West said: “I got into chess at primary school, and it gave me real focus and a sense of belonging through playing with others and joining the team. Playing Chess builds important qualities like resilience and patience. That’s why I’m working to bring chess into schools across my constituency of Wolverhampton West, so more children can benefit from it as I did growing up.”
The tournament was delivered in collaboration with CSC, a national charity dedicated to introducing chess into schools and community settings. Malcolm Pein, Founder and Chief Executive of CSC, emphasised the educational value of the game and its rapid growth in popularity.
“Teachers understand that Chess is very good for children. One of the great things about it is that you can teach children to treat any defeat in chess as a learning experience and a way to become better the next time you play. We now find that about eight times as many people are playing chess as we're playing chess five years ago. Chess.com has over nine million IP addresses in this country, the game is absolutely booming!”
The event marks an important step in expanding access to chess across Wolverhampton, with plans to build on this success and bring more opportunities to local schools in the future.
