Every Monday starting 6pm, we provide an hour where children of all ages and abilities can learn and practice chess in a safe and enjoyable environment. We have one of the best venues in London, the Mindsports Centre near Ravenscourt Park.
Led by our Junior Officer Tom Townsend, and Head Coach Tom Villiers, Junior Hour (JH) will consist of three terms per year following school terms. During school holiday time and half-time, Juniors can join the adults in our regular Club Night from 7pm (as indeed they can any Monday).
Upon joining, each individual Junior will be assessed by a coach or senior member of the club for chess ability, and assigned for playing and coaching purposes to a group of similar level Juniors. These range from the very basic levels (i.e. learning the rules of the game) to much stronger players who are ready to get involved in competitive games against adults. This is something we encourage with our Hammersmith Juniors team in the London League (captained by Frank Valle).
Please note that each Junior can move up the group as his or her strength improves.
Hammersmith Chess Club takes its safeguarding responsibilities seriously. Appropriate DBS checks are made. Our privacy and safeguarding policy is below:
http://hammerchess.co.uk/
What happens in Junior Hour?
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- All Juniors are requested to register at the start of each JH sessions, so we can track attendance and development.
- Some nights we have supervised play, with elementary coaching for beginners. Juniors can play until 7pm and beyond.
- Other nights, we have lectures and other activities. We may study Junior Hour players’ games, for example, solve puzzles, or have themed play.
- Once a month or so, we have a round of our unique Minihammer tournament, a rapidplay “arena-style” tourney.
- On some Thursday nights (exact dates TBD – keep an eye on our Calendar) the following will also happen:
- Lectures specifically for Juniors from experienced chess trainers.
- Other club activities not necessarily for juniors only, but in which they will be welcome to participate.
- Please note that in order to keep a safe and educational environment for the kids, only coaches and support staff are allowed in the main room. Parents are more than welcome to stay at the bar right next to it, where food and drinks are available at reasonable prices.
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Contact and Fees
Juniors must be members of the club (for 2024/25, the rates are £50 per annum for boys and £20 for girls) and then JH access is billed separately at £100 per annum. If joining in the middle of a season these rates might be lower, please check the link below.
Payment can be made by electronic bank transfer or cash. Please see bank details below and full membership details on our Contact and Joining page:
Name: Hammersmith Chess Club
Sort Code: 40-03-21
Account Number: 91245120
If you would like further information please email enquiries@hammerchess.co.uk or contact John White, our Chairman.