Gloucestershire Cricket set to feature on tonight’s Sport Relief
18 March 2016
Tune into Sport Relief on BBC 1 tonight and you might see some of Gloucestershire Cricket’s legends including Syd Lawrence and Mark Alleyne.
In November, seven former players took part in the club’s first Chat, Play, Unite event at the Bristol County Ground, aimed at reducing social isolation amongst the elderly population and also encouraging people from different backgrounds and different ages to mix.
As well as hearing memories from the former players, participants also took part in cricket activities delivered by some of the city’s brightest sports stars from City Academy, played a selection of board games from around the world and had some of their memories of watching Gloucestershire play recorded by pupils from Bedminster Down School.
The BBC film crew were there to capture the historic event which was the first of its kind in the country to take place at a professional sports ground.
“Chat, Play, Unite is such a unique event because it gives people a chance to take part in physical exercise who otherwise might not have the opportunity.” explains Chris Wilkins, co-founder of Sporting Memories Network who run the event in partnership with Gloucestershire Cricket. “The event caught the attention of Sport Relief as it also promotes interaction between members of our community who might not otherwise meet each other.”
The events take place every other month. The third Chat, Play, Unite took place only yesterday – with a visit from Bristolian Olympic triple jumper, Vernon Samuels.
A wide range of groups go along to the sessions including members of the Dhek Bhal group who support people from the South Asian community, the various Drop Ins based in the city who help people with learning difficulties and also the ‘Extra Time’ group based at Bristol Rovers who give some of their older fans a chance to socialise.
“I can’t tell you how much everyone looks forward to Chat, Play, Unite.” says Head of Community Engagement at Gloucestershire Cricket, Roz Hutchings. “As people are leaving the session they’re already asking when they can come back. It’s amazing to see the positive impact being given the chance to have a go at cricket is having on their lives. I can’t wait to see if we make it on national TV tonight!”
Photo: Members of the Dhek Bhal group teaching the board game Coram to students from City Academy at a recent Chat, Play, Unite at the Bristol County Ground.
