Not-for-profit organisation British Esports Association has partnered with computer-building companies PC Specialist and Fierce PC to host a championship for Alternative Provision (AP) schools.
This one-off tournament is separate from British Esports Association’s other competitive endeavors and will take place on Rocket League from January, 30th to March 27th. The event will include weekly matches.
AP schools are designed to provide education for young people who can’t attend mainstream schools that have additional needs. Eight institutions will take part in the championship:
- Notton House School in Chippenham, Wiltshire
- The Green Room in Windsor, Berkshire
- The Gateway in Slough, Berkshire
- Millside School in Slough, Berkshire
- Glebe School in Bromley, Kent
- Sheffield Inclusion Centre (SIC) in Sheffield, Yorkshire
- Nightingale Community Academy in Wandsworth, London
- Orchard Hill College in Sutton, Surrey
Tom Dore, Head of Education at British Esports Association discussed the tournament: “I’m pleased to report we have some very excited AP schools and students on board. I am proud to say we are working with a wide range of AP schools who support a full spectrum of students with additional needs and look forward to bringing this esports tournament to them.”
The tournament is planned to run alongside Season 2 of the British Esports Championships – designed for secondary schools and further education colleges – which takes place on League of Legends and Overwatch, in addition to Rocket League.
Tim Brown, B2B Business Development Manager at PC Specialist also commented: “PC Specialist is excited to be given the opportunity to work alongside the British Esports Association in its project to extend the esports Championships into Alternative Provision schools.
“It is encouraging to learn how participating in esports can be used to help improve both attendance and motivation of students when used as the reward for hitting specific targets as part of individual, personalised learning contracts. Hopefully projects such as this can be used to identify further links between esports and improved academic work, leading to increased participation from AP schools, and ultimately help them to further support students with additional needs.”
PC Specialist and Fierce PC will each loan 12 computers for the event with Green Man Gaming supplying game keys for Psyonix’s Rocket League. This means each AP school will receive three systems and three licenses at zero cost.
Morgan Ashurst, Senior Marketing Executive at Fierce PC added: “At Fierce PC we’re extremely passionate about esports. Every day esports becomes bigger and more influential, especially with young people, and the British Esport Championships is a great way to get young people with additional needs involved.
“We are proud to be a part of this venture and hope to provide the support that Alternative Provision schools deserve. They do a great job and we’re glad to help out giving those with additional needs the start in life they require to get them on the path to success.”
The standard season will take place online during lunchtimes on Wednesdays, with the finals being hosted at the Insomnia Gaming Festival in April. British Esports Association will feed back information from this tournament to the Department for Education to provide “evidence of impact”.
Esports Insider says: Yet again, British Esports Association is trying new things at the benefit of the youth and the esports industry. Grassroots initiatives such as this tournament are incredibly important for the future of the industry and we hope it proves worthwhile for all concerned parties.