First and foremost chess should be fun! This is the ethos of Ojays, the Oxfordshire Junior Squad Chess Club. We currently meet weekly in person, during term time, to develop young chess players in preparation for county tournaments and individual competitions.

Club Dates

Summer Term 2025 - Ojays Club Sessions

Ojays sessions this term will be Friday evenings in person, coached by Joe Cossins-Smith.

Introduction from Joe

With the recent success of the Oxfordshire junior chess teams, I’m confident that we will continue to see similar results in the future, and we are hosting these sessions to try to assure this.

I will, once again, be bringing along FM Kenneth Hobson to as many sessions as possible, although he won’t be able to make it every week due to his own studies. I’m very excited to be able to bring this opportunity to the children, as this is not something many were afforded when I used to play for Oxfordshire.

Venue

Ojays meets weekly, on a Friday evening between 18:00-19:45, at:

On-site parking is plentiful and free.

Session Format

We will start at 6pm, at which time we will begin by playing games for 45 minutes, followed by a coaching session for 60 minutes.

The children are split into teams and, whether working through games or tactical themes, questions are posed at key points.

The start time is significantly earlier than other evening chess clubs to allow younger children to take part.

Dates

The dates we are meeting this term are:

  • Friday 25th April
  • Friday 2nd May
  • Friday 9th May
  • Friday 16th May
  • Friday 23th May
  • Friday 30th May
  • Friday 6th June
  • Friday 13th June

Ojays started as the Oxfordshire Junior Squad chess club in 2013 and has been successful in helping Oxfordshire juniors to enjoy chess and improve their game ever since.