Gloucestershire schools benefit from £90k funding
10 January 2013
Gloucestershire secondary schools to benefit from new £90,000 Chance to Shine funding.
The Gloucestershire Cricket Board (GCB) will deliver its first project aimed purely at secondary school pupils after receiving £90,000 funding from Chance to Shine.
The three-year partnership will allow the GCB to provide coaching sessions in secondarys across the county in an attempt to get more children interested in cricket and stop youngsters dropping out of the game.
The scheme will also include arranging competitive matches between schools and training for teachers.
Gloucestershire cricket development manager Steve Silk said: “This is the first time that funds have been made available for cricket boards to work specifically with secondary and special schools.
“At the moment a lot of kids enjoy their first taste of cricket at primary school but can be lost to the game when they go to secondary school. This funding will help us encourage youngsters to keep playing cricket as well as introducing new people to the game.”
Priority schools and age groups to benefit from the funding will be chosen following an audit into the needs of schools, which is currently being carried out by GCB staff.
The agreement is the latest in the board’s long-standing partnership with the Cricket Foundation charity. It’s Chance to Shine programme - which is supported by Brit Insurance - is the biggest grass-roots sport development programme ever undertaken in Britain. It was launched in 2005 by Governor of the Bank of England Sir Mervyn King to reverse the decline of cricket in state schools and has now brought cricket to 1.8 million schoolchildren.
In 2012 the GCB supported the delivery of Chance to Shine sessions in 119 schools, most of them primaries. More than 30 of these were new to the scheme. As part of the programme, the schools played 1595 games internally and externally with 322 new players joining clubs as a result of Chance to Shine.
Steve said: “There is no school-based scheme anywhere else in sport that comes close to Chance to Shine. We have been heavily involved with them for a number of years and over that time thousands of children have been enthused about cricket and been encouraged to join clubs. We are confident that this new scheme will bring similar results.”
Stuart Priscott, Chance to Shine regional manager for the south and south west said: “We want to inspire children to choose cricket. This funding will help create more and better opportunities for young people to play cricket within secondary schools. It builds on the great work that we and the GCB have done at primary level. Now we want to extend this to encourage pupils in secondary schools to play, compete and join local cricket clubs.”
About ‘Chance to Shine supported by Brit Insurance
Chance to Shine is bringing cricket back to schools. Before it launched in 2005, fewer than 10% of state schools played competitive cricket. Chance to Shine is now running in 4,500 schools and 1.8million children have enjoyed cricketing opportunities as a result. Chance to Shine is not just about cricket. Young people involved in the programme are developing essential life skills and values, such as leadership, discipline, teamwork and understanding how to win and lose. £15 pays for a child to benefit from Chance to Shine for a year. Donate now at chancetoshine.org and join us at facebook.com/cricketinschools
About the Gloucestershire Cricket Board
The Gloucestershire Cricket Board is the governing body for cricket in Gloucestershire and the local delivery arm of England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB). Gloucestershire Cricket Board works with clubs, schools and community groups to improve and increase cricket provision and competitive opportunities in Gloucestershire. It provides training and guidance in a range of areas including coach education; groundsmanship; and umpiring and scoring. Gloucestershire Cricket Board also runs high performance cricket in the county for both male and female cricketers.
