Support for Juniors

[Patrick McGovern]

It is great to see our juniors doing so well in representing scotland and your efforts and success deserve to be highly praised. But....... 20 or so juniors arent going to swell the rank and file membership.
Jim Webster

Assuming Jim means rank and file to mean all of chess in Scotland then;
Although Jim makes a valid point it is missing the point of the focus of Junior chess. The adults (rank and file) in scottish chess have managed quite well without support from Chess Scotland. Given their finite (limited) resources it may be difficult to see any scheme that would increase membership in clubs. There is a recognition that the adults who are interested in chess have the where with all to participate in chess.
However there are concerns that budding talented juniors are slipping through the net. In order to address this there are various initiatives in place to encourage juniors to, a] take part, and b] be retained in the chess system. Whilst the plans and actions may not be perfect it is better to try to do something than let what we have wither on the vine.

In a perfect world we would see initiatives for adult chess players, higher prize funds, cheaper entry fees etc etc. But this is unlikely unless we get a sugar daddy to put serious monies into chess (as in the £25,000 given to the Scottish Championship).

If he means rank and file to be junior chess only then there are specific strategies in place nationally and locally to try and put chess into every school. I know in Ayrshire at committee level there are strenuous moves to get chess not only into primary schools but to try and get it included in the curriculum.