Lockhart Campus in Stevenson, North Ayrshire, works with children and young people who require additional support.

The school received resources, equipment and in-person rugby delivery from Scottish Rugby for their first ever sessions of rugby for 20 pupils between the ages of 11 and 16 during the week.

Scottish Rugby Regional Manager, Alan Falconer was joined by Kilmarnock Rugby Development Officer, Stephen Main, to help the young people learn the basics of rugby in an enjoyable and exciting way, tailored to their needs.

“It was a real pleasure to work with pupils from the Lockhart Campus during Scottish Rugby Schools Week, the children who took part were very enthusiatic and seemed to have a lot of fun,” said Alan.

“Rugby truly is an inclusive sport, and it can be delivered in so many different ways to support children and young people who have additional needs to learn and develop.”

After enjoying their first taste of rugby this week, Lockhart Campus are now looking ahead to the next phase of their rugby journey, starting with a three-week block of activity delivered by a local Development Officer.

Alan added: “Like many other schools engaging with the programme this week, Scottish Rugby Schools Week has been the perfect launch-pad for Lockhart Campus, but it’s important that this is more than a one-time experience.

“As well as returning to deliver in-person sessions, we’ll help the school develop links with the local community to provide enhanced rugby experiences and opportunities for the pupils, so they can continue engaging with rugby in a meaningful way outside of school.”

Deputy Head Teacher at Lockhart Campus, John Herd will be leading the school’s future endeavours in rugby, and said: “We are really pleased to be starting our rugby experience by taking part in Scottish Rugby Schools Week. It can often be challenging to engage with external stakeholders, so we are delighted to be receiving support from Scottish Rugby to guide us in the delivery of rugby as a sporting activity for our young people.

“Watching the sessions being delivered was fantastic, it was lovely to see every individual supported throughout. Everyone at Lockhart Campus is looking forward to continuing to work with Scottish Rugby and our wider communities.”