Snooker legend Steve Davis has launched the inaugural Community WPBSA World Snooker Coach Certificate at the Accrington Academy.

The new Level One certificate is aimed at developing skills that will encourage young people to get involved with snooker through fun snooker-based activities, setting up grass roots programmes and an introduction to the basics of the game.

A total of 13 sixth form students were joined by two young people from North Lancs Training Group at the launch.

Youngsters at the Academy will use snooker as part of their BTEC sport qualification. Young people at North Lancs Training Group and Accrington Academy have for some years used snooker as a daily taught activity to support the development of English and maths.

Andy O’Brien, Accrington Academy Principal said: “It has been a very positive experience for everyone involved, we have a dedicated classroom with a mixture of snooker tables and desks.

“The results we have found using snooker as a daily taught activity have been quite remarkable.”

Six-times world champion Davis added: “I never imagined that one day snooker would be part of the day to day life of a school with youngsters learning snooker skills through coaching enabling them the to maintain their engagement to learn English and maths.

“While other schools, through the BTEC sport qualification, are using snooker, the sport is indebted to Accrington Academy and North Lancs Training Group, in particular Andy O’Brien and Jim Harkness, who have pioneered this latest development with their support for Chris Lovell, NLTG’s World Snooker Coach, and the team.”

All the successful graduates will be invited to the World Snooker Championships at the famous Crucible Theatre in Sheffield to receive their certificates.