In an increasingly digital world, Irvine was proud to recently renew its online connection with French twin town Voisins-le-Bretonneux.
All down to a group of energised Irvine Royal Academy pupils, passionate about gaming, the third year gamers joined forces with pupils from Irvine’s twin town in a recent virtual gaming contest.
Hosted kindly by the Scottish Maritime Museum, the contest took place on Saturday 10 May, attended by North Ayrshire Provost, Councillor Anthea Dickson.
Playing football together online, the morning was a Scotland vs France tournament, and the afternoon was a cup style tournament to find the best player.
Irvine Royal pupils participating shared:
- “My favourite part was getting to play against another school with my friends.”
- “It was cool to get to play FIFA against people in a different school and celebrate when we scored.”
- “I managed to get a few good wins but some of the French boys were too good.”
The whole team played valiantly, and the pupils hope to turn these international gaming sessions into a yearly event, bringing other games into the events to draw more players and create a stronger bond between our twinned towns.
Headteacher of Irvine Royal Academy, Linzi Sloan shared: “Gaming is obviously a big thing for many of our young people and even some of our staff.
“I was delighted when one of our wonderful Pupil Support Assistant’s, Scott Finnigan, agreed to lead on the event. We put an advert in our daily pupil bulletin and the young people then put themselves forward for the contest with our French counterparts. It is great to see the competition come to fruition. Hopefully, this is the start of something special between Irvine Royal and the schools involved from Voisins.”
“A lot of the pupils did not know about Irvine’s twin town. Learning about it and getting to meet people their age from our twin town via the recent gaming contest was a great experience for all. Fostering these types of friendships can really help our young people grow and develop a greater understanding of other places and cultures. Gaming provides a medium that is understood the world over and makes these friendships easier to nurture. Well done to everyone involved.”Pupil Support Assistant and Event Lead, Scott Finnigan
