The Bobby Robson foundation

Sir Bobby Robson’s youngest son, Mark, was recently invited to Langley Park Primary School to talk to the young pupils about his dad’s life and career. The County Durham school is a stone’s throw from the house where Sir Bobby grew up with four brothers and began playing football in a back lane

Mark’s visit was part of the school’s commitment to their CARE principles - compassion, ambition, respect and excellence - and they felt Sir Bobby embodied all of those characteristics.

The pupils, aged from four to 11, enjoyed learning about Sir Bobby’s incredible life and Mark brought along some of his dad’s England caps for them to hold.

As well as hearing about Sir Bobby’s childhood and early life in Langley Park, where he was an apprentice electrician in the colliery, Mark talked to the children about his dad’s extraordinary football career and The Sir Bobby Robson Foundation, the cancer charity his dad launched in 2008.

Mark says: “I thoroughly enjoyed my visit to Langley Park Primary School.  Mum and dad grew up here, they met here, and I think this visit is something my dad would have loved to do. He’d have enjoyed all the fantastic questions the pupils asked as much as I did.

“Dad was a pupil at Langley Park Infants and then at nearby Waterhouses School before he began work in the colliery.

“He was proud of his County Durham roots and took the work ethic he learned here wherever his football career took him. It was a real treat to share a little bit about his life with the Langley Park pupils and I appreciate the invitation to visit.”

The Sir Bobby Robson Foundation, which is part of Newcastle Hospitals Charity, is launching a new initiative, Play For Sir Bobby. Created for schools, the hope is to encourage more young people to get involved in charitable activity and the fundraising pack includes a range of fun fundraising challenges that can involve all ages.

Having been inspired by their famous former pupil, Langley Park Primary School will be doing some fundraising themselves later this month.

The money raised will go towards completion of the Sir Bobby Robson Institute, a world leading cancer drug trials centre for the region.

David Mordue, Langley Park Primary School Headteacher, says: “It’s wonderful for us to have someone like Sir Bobby connected to Langley Park. The values we hold as a school are the values he lived throughout his life, wherever he was in the world, and that’s inspirational for our pupils.

“We loved welcoming Mark to join our assembly and look forward to supporting the work of The Sir Bobby Robson Foundation. The importance of being caring is something we’re always keen to promote within our school.”

Funded by The Sir Bobby Robson Foundation, when completed, the Sir Bobby Robson Institute will enable ground-breaking cancer treatment that will directly benefit around 3.5 million people living in the North East, North Cumbria and North Yorkshire, as well as making a global impact.

Construction of the £30m institute began in April on the site of the Freeman Hospital in Newcastle and fundraising is ongoing for the final £500,000 needed to complete the building.

For more information about the Sir Bobby Robson Institute, please visit: www.sirbobbysgreatestteam.co.uk