More than 20,000 children will benefit from programme

OUR cricket delivery in schools is largely funded by the cricket charity Chance to Shine.

Chance to Shine is a national charity that aims to give all children the opportunity to play, learn and develop through cricket.

Cricket is used as a tool to help to develop the personal, social and physical skills of children.

CHANCE TO SHINE SCHOOLS

We work in state schools to provide children with a brilliant first experience of cricket.

We send our specialist coaches into schools to provide free cricket coaching and help develop teachers’ knowledge of cricket.

As well as the physical benefits of regular activity, we use cricket to teach children important key life skills that will help them beyond the playground.

Through the values of cricket, we teach about respect and fair play.

Cricket is also an effective way to develop skills like communication, leadership and perseverance that will benefit them throughout their life.

Cricket is an inclusive sport, where girls and boys can play and learn together. Normalising female participation in cricket is a hugely important and valuable part of the work that we do.

Of the five million children that Chance to Shine has reached since its foundation in 2005, 46 per cent are girls – and this figure is rising.

In 2020, the charity reached as many girls as boys for the first time.

Particular emphasis is given to schools in disadvantaged areas to enable those children to get opportunities that they may not normally be able to access. This includes access to All Stars and Dynamos clubs in their schools.

In Staffordshire, we typically deliver in around 150 primary schools and support competitions for both primary and secondary.

In the current school year, we will work with more than 20,000 children.

CHANCE TO SHINE STREET

Chance to Shine Street cricket gives children and young adults in inner-city areas the opportunity to play the sport – 85 per cent of players were not members of a traditional cricket club when they joined the sessions.

Street offers a different way into the sport. It’s played with a tennis ball wrapped in electrical tape, plastic bats and matches last for just 20 minutes – it’s cricket’s answer to five-a-side football!

The projects run after school or at weekends, completely free, and players don’t need equipment.

The sessions run in sports halls, community centres and schools for two age groups - youths

(eight to 16) and young adults (16 to 24).

Local leagues and tournaments run throughout the year to give the cricketers the opportunity to make friends with people from other areas and play in a competitive environment.

Chance to Shine Street is bringing the game to some of the poorest areas of the UK.

Two-thirds of Street cricketers live in the 30 per cent most deprived areas of the UK and the sessions provide them with an alternative to hanging out on the streets or sitting at home in front of the TV.

Street cricket can also be a powerful way for people to make new friends and to integrate into the community.

Projects in cities like Stoke-ontrent – who have a high number of refugees – have used Street to engage with these people and help them to feel at home and welcome in the area.

We currently run seven Street Projects across the county, including two in Stoke, where we work alongside Engage Communities.