SIR Bob Murray’s delight at Sunderland AFC staying in the top flight of English football is only matched by his satisfaction at the growing success of the educational foundation he founded on Wearside 14 years ago.

The largest football-related charity in the country, since 2001 the Foundation of Light has used the power of football to educate and inspire more than 40,000 young people and their families every year through a range of innovative programmes that can help change lives.

Now the former Sunderland AFC chairman and Honorary Life President is looking forward to the next stage in his ambitious quest to boost educational attainment in one of the most deprived parts of the North-East.

The opening of the new Sunderland Centre of Opportunity (SCOO) in the new, state-of-the-art Beacon of Light building next to the Stadium of Light in September 2016, will allow up to 80 pupils aged between 13 and 16 who have been excluded – or are at risk of exclusion – to be taught.

The goal of the Government-funded new free school will be to re-integrate sometimes alienated young people back into mainstream education, giving them the skills, attitudes and motivation to continue their education.

In line with the work of the rest of the Foundation of Light, the new SCOO centre will use Sunderland Football Club’s brand name to help young people gain the skills and qualifications to change their lives and improve their chances of employment.

The crucial role education can play in a young person’s life is personified by Sir Bob’s own life experience – and provides an understanding of why he has poured so much time, effort and hard cash into helping others get a step up the ladder of educational attainment.

Born in 1946 - just after the end of the Second World War – Bob was brought up in Consett, the only son of a former Sunderland pitman turned steelworker.

Because he was a ‘baby boomer’ he found there was huge competition for jobs in the town.

The bitter experience of poverty and of being on the dole for a year made him determined to better himself and get on in life.

With just one maths O level to his name, Bob decided he was going to become an accountant, even if it took him 10 years. Night classes at Consett Technical College led to him taking an accountancy course at what was then Newcastle Polytechnic.

His rapid rise in the world of business was accelerated when he qualified, aged 26, as a chartered certified accountant in 1972 at what was then Leeds Polytechnic. Forty years later he became chancellor of what is now Leeds Beckett University.

Bob’s experience of the transformative power of education made him determined to give something back to the people of the North-East and has fuelled his drive to help others get on in life.

“The Foundation of Light has achieved far more in 14 years than I ever could have imagined when I set it up. It has surpassed all my expectations and made a lasting difference to hundreds of thousands of people in that time. “

But Sir Bob says it is the new Beacon project that will make a lasting difference to generations to come.

“It is something I feel incredibly passionate about and single-minded to make it happen.”

While Sir Bob is known to fans as ‘Mr Sunderland’ and retains his love for the Black Cats he goes out of his way to stress his support for the region as a whole.

One of the first things he said was: “I am not just for Sunderland. I am for the North-East. The Foundation of Light has reached out to people from all over the region. We get people coming from all of County Durham and from South Tyneside as well as from Sunderland. We are not just a Sunderland-based charity and the Beacon of Light will be a regional facility of national importance.”

This attitude is reflected in the fact that on Bank Holiday Monday Sir Bob will be at Wembley stadium to see whether Middlesbrough can overcome Norwich City and grab the last Premier League promotion place.

“I’m going to support Middlesbrough on Monday. I am going to Wembley with Steve Gibson. I think Steve is a great chairman and I want Middlesbrough in the Premier League,” he says.

Sir Bob takes a similar generous view towards the plight of regional rivals Newcastle United, who must try to win their last game at home to guarantee survival in the first tier of English football.

“Newcastle United going down is not good for the region. It would be great to have three clubs up there.”

But the Sunderland loyalist adds: “Lately, playing Newcastle means you get two wins”