Educators discuss long-term impact of Olympics

The triple-jump star will deliver a speech at the North of England Education Conference on Friday on how the 2012 Olympics and Paralympics can inspire young people and raise aspirations.

He is among several speakers who will talk about sports impact on young people during the Olympic year on the final day of the three-day conference at the Royal Armouries in Leeds.

Leeds City Council’s Olympics project manager Peter Smith will talk about using the London games as a learning tool while award-winning journalist and former table-tennis champion Matthew Syed will deliver a speech entitled “Bounce – the potential is out there and in here”.

The event will also include keynote speeches from leading politicians with Schools Minister Nick Gibb addressing the conference on Friday and Labour’s Shadow Education Secretary Stephen Twigg delivering a speech tomorrow.

The conference starts today with president Mick Waters, former director of the curriculum at the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority, delivering an opening address.

The North of England Education Conference is the country’s most historic event of its kind having taken place annually for more than 100 years.

This year’s event is being hosted by Leeds City Council and partners that include Leeds University and Leeds Metropolitan University.

The programme includes a speech on nurturing every child’s creativity by West Yorkshire Playhouse’s founder Jude Kelly and an education question time with high-profile panellists on either side of the debate over the creation of the new state-funded free schools which can be set up by parents, teachers or other successful schools.

The event includes journalist and author Toby Young, who led the bid to create the West London Free School, which opened last year. He will appear on the panel alongside state school campaigners Melissa Benn and Fiona Millar of the Local Schools Network which has been critical of the free school movement.

Promoting the event last month Mr Waters said: “The programme is dynamic; the organisers have assembled a galaxy of fine speakers who will challenge and provoke debate around the conference theme of passion, potential and performance.

“With the Olympic Games year upon us there is a sporting focus and the arts, business, politics and journalism all have their say.”