GCB & Mezze Restaurants join forces to boost cricket in schools
29 May 2014
Over 1000 more schoolchildren in the South West will receive cricket coaching through a major partnership between Gloucestershire Cricket Board (GCB) and Mezze Restaurants.
The sponsorship agreement will allow the GCB’s qualified coaches to educate pupils in an additional 20 primary and secondary schools across the county.
The project officially launched at the NatWestT20 Blast match between Gloucestershire and Somerset on May 16, at the Bristol County Ground.
Mezze Managing Director, Alex Tryfonos, said: “Earlier this year we offered a coaching programme to 12 schools across Bristol and North Somerset.
“This proved highly successful and we have now extended our outreach programme to further spearhead increased nutrition and sporting levels in conjunction with the GCB.”
The partnership will also allow the GCB to educate children on healthy-living thanks to the input of chefs from Mezze Restaurants
Alex added: “With soaring UK child obesity rates suggesting one-fifth of children in reception and a third in the final year of primary school are obese or overweight, it is important that children become more active.
“By becoming more engaged in sport and spending less time sitting in the classroom, we hope to instil healthier living in children and even produce future cricket stars.”
The GCB currently delivers cricket coaching to more than 150 primary, secondary and special schools across Bristol and Gloucestershire. Coaches typically deliver blocks of six to eight weeks with sessions in both curriculum time and as after-school clubs.
The new cash injection from Mezze - one of the region’s leading restaurants groups - will help them achieve their aim of coaching 10,000 pupils in 2015.
GCB Chief Executive Steve Silk said: “Our schools coaching is the lifeblood of our work to grow and develop cricket in Gloucestershire.
“The partnership with Mezze Restaurants will not only allow us to reach more than 1000 additional children a year, it will also enable us to improve our education programme by providing information on healthy living.
“By working with Mezze Restaurants we will be able to inspire more children to take up cricket and make it the sport of choice in our schools.”
As well as the schools coaching the agreement with Mezze includes the chance for youngsters to be flag-bearers and mascots at all of Gloucestershire’s home NatWest T20 Blast matches (see pic). They will also sponsor Glos spinner Tom Smith.
