By Ben Baker

PUPILS at Ravensbourne School are ensuring the London 2012 legacy lives on after rubbing shoulders with an Olympic and Paralympic champion last week.

Despite the dust having settled on the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games more than a year ago, the memories of that unforgettable summer remain fresh at Ravensbourne.

A handful of pupils attended a Get Set to Make a Change workshop at Canterbury College where they were given expert advice from Olympic gold medallist Tim Baillie and Paralympic champion Natalie Jones.

They were also offered support and ideas to plan a community project as the scheme bids to encourage people to come together, using the Olympic Games as their inspiration.

Josh Letchbridge was one of those Ravensbourne pupils and, after meeting Baillie and Jones, he is now bursting with ideas for their plan to host a football tournament for local primary schools.

“It was a really interesting day,” said the 15-year-old.

“We went around looking to plan an event and we came up with the idea of setting up a football tournament.

“It helped us discover what to do and how to do it and what stages you need to go through. It is an idea that has really developed quickly.

“Our school is really big on football so that was the best idea.

“We have the facilities to hold the tournament so hopefully it can develop even more.

“It was really fun to meet Tim and Natalie.

“They had their medals and they spoke to us and gave some really inspirational speeches.”

The Get Set to Make a Change programme will inspire almost 5,000 teenagers through 23 roadshows in 12 cities across the UK to deliver pledges of support to their community.

And with his dream London 2012 still fresh, canoe slalom double champion Baillie admitted it was an easy decision to throw his weight behind Ravensbourne and the innovative new programme.

“The Olympics and Paralympics were a massive success and really cool from my point of view but also for the country as a whole,” said Baillie.

“As Britons we are tremendously proud of our values and we all saw that last summer with the nation being a really positive place – and we need to keep that going as much as possible.”

Through GSTMC, the British Olympic Foundation, in conjunction with the British Paralympic Association is using the spirit of the London Games to re-inspire young people across the UK.

The project is being supported by a £2.5m grant from the Big Lottery Fund’s Keeping the Spirit of 2012 Alive campaign.

For more information, visit makeachange.org.uk

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