Pupils battle French competitors at Maritime Museum
In an increasingly digital world, Irvine was proud last week to 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 our 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 gaming events into a yearly event, bringing other games into the events to draw more players and create a stronger bond between our twinned towns.
Quote: 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 Assistants, 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.
Quote from: Linzie Sloan, Headteacher of Irvine Royal Academy
North Ayrshire Provost, Anthea Dickson said: “Thank you to Irvine Royal Academy for participating in the recent Twin Town Gaming Contest. It was very exciting to see everyone competing and a novelty to link up with Voisins online and to further develop our links with Irvine’s twin town.
“Thanks to all the young people who took part and to the Scottish Maritime Museum for hosting the event. It was also a pleasure to say a quick hello to Mayor Rosetti from Voisins too.”
It is the 20th anniversary of Irvine’s twinning with Voisins and whilst Irvine’s Twinning Association is no longer in operation, Irvine Royal Academy wanted to do its part to keep the connection alive.
Councillor Shaun Macaulay, Cabinet Member for Education and Young People, said: “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.”
Stay tuned to North Ayrshire Council on social media for more details of how children and young people are harnessing the power of online to build meaningful connections and develop new skills.
Published: 16 May 2025