Thousands of Havering school children will be going to this summer’s Olympic and Paralympic Games for free, it was announced.

Emails were sent to 74 schools in the borough this week, after The Mayor of London Boris Johnson promised one in eight London youngsters would get a seat at the world’s greatest sporting event.

“These tickets will ensure that in every part of Havering someone you know will be heading to an event at one of our terrific Olympic and Paralympic venues,” Boris said. “These are London’s Games so it’s only right that the next generation are right at the heart of the action. Watching some of world’s greatest athletes reach for gold, these young Londoners will form a huge part of what could be the most enduring legacy of these Games – a generation inspired and motivated to achieve their best in the classroom and out on the playing field.”

In the last three years, 2,419 schools in the capital, attended by more than 90 per cent of the capital’s 10-18 year old students, have joined the London 2012 Get Set education programme - a partnership between the Mayor and the London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games (LOCOG).

Those which joined became eligible for a share of 125,000 tickets through the London 2012 Ticketshare scheme.

Schools in Havering have received 3532 tickets.