I think we all agree that the future of what we call "Twinning" but is known under many different names lies with the support and involvement of the younger generation.

We all have schools in our areas, but what communication do we have with them?

Are we encouraging them to get involved with our links?

I know we have had problems in recent years whereby each educational authority has tended to address their own particular agendas, but we have never been in a better position than now where central government is attempting to redress the balance.

All primary schools are now expected to introduce some sort of foreign language training and knowledge of other countries.

One source of information of possible activities is the Globalgateway, see post in another section of these board here.

Also the etwinning website here

Check out these sites and then approach your local schools offering to help in their studies, using your own knowledge of your twin links, could be a great way to not only improve and foster your own group ambitions, but at the same time help the future generations in your communities.

If you have already gone down this route, please share with us all your experiences.

Hi, Alan

I'd like to share some thoughts on this. We already have one firm school link (England/Germany), and we're revitalising a link that was broken when - the usual story - a vital staff member left, and also the school at our end was changed almost beyond recognition! We're working with the people who are there now, and things are looking promising.

What's new for us is that, in connection with a primary schools/voluntary choir joint project (see "Choral History" at our website kidderminsterchoralsociety.co.uk) we invited music teachers from Germany to come and experience what we were doing. In the event, only two were able to come - from senior schools (junior schools obviously don't have the flexibility to send staff away for three or four days!). Nothing daunted, we took them to two of our Primary Schools that were involved in the project, and had a great time with them. Both showed great interest in making links with their German equivalents, and we shall take it from there, putting on exhibitions about our twinning links and helping in whatever other ways we can. One of them mentioned existing etwinning links with other countries, and this is obviously an important resource and one which we must learn more about if we are to participate properly and help in an effective way.

There is, as you say, an eagerness in the primary schools to grasp the opportunities for cross-border links, and if we get involved it's much more than merely jumping on a bandwagon. After all, if we can interest them at primary school level they will hopefully continue the interest into senior schools and beyond, and there lies the future for our Associations!

I'll be doing a full write-up of the project and the visit, so keep an eye on the website mentioned above!

All the best.

Kidder