School-aged graduates celebrate clocking up 18,000 hours of activity outside class

PROUD children celebrated their part in clocking up an extra 18,000 hours of out-of-school activities as they graduated from Rotherham Children’s University.

More than 50 kids were invited to Gulliver’s Valley to collect their certificates in the first ceremony of its kind since the initiative began.

Rotherham Children’s University started with a small pilot involving five schools in 2018/19 and continued to during the pandemic to provide tailored support such as home learning challenges.

More than 3,000 children in Rotherham taken part in 18,673 hours of extra-curricular activity - all tracked through the programme.

There are now plans to increase the schools and learning centres involved in the next academic year.

Cllr Victoria Cusworth, Rotherham Council’s cabinet member for children and young people, said: “I am immensely proud of every one of the 3,000 children and young people from Rotherham who have taken part in the South Yorkshire Children’s University, which continues to go from strength-to-strength.

“Our fantastic family of schools have been instrumental in supporting the children to clock-up a staggering 18,000 hours of extra-curricular activity, which is a remarkable achievement and deserving of this recognition.”