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Free Cricket Sessions For Young People Launched In Basingstoke
Free Cricket Sessions For Young People Launched In Basingstoke
Sessions, run by Hampshire Cricket Board, receive funding from Hampshire & Isle of Wight Police and Crime Commissioner
The first of many free weekly sessions to make cricket accessible to young people in Basingstoke on Tuesday 31st January 2023.
The sessions are organised by the Hampshire Cricket Board through a partnership with VIVID Plus, Brighton Hill Community School and Chance to Shine.
The programme is aiming to widen access to cricket for young people in Basingstoke and using Brighton Hill Community School as a base, we can expect to see additional youth engagement sessions launching in community spaces around the town.
The ‘Street’ programme is also running free-to-access sessions at two locations in Portsmouth and the projects join the successful Southampton Wicketz programme in providing growing, county-wide urban cricket delivery.
Across the county, 14 weekly sessions are now in action, giving young people with previously little or no access to cricket, opportunities to play the game.
Hampshire Cricket Board, in partnership with VIVID Plus received funding from Hampshire Police and Crime Commissioner, Donna Jones, for the project as part of her drive to support victims, reduce offending or re-offending, and protect the vulnerable from crime and exploitation over the next three years.
The Hampshire ‘Street’ project aims to engage young people in regular sport in their communities, operating as an early intervention to youth crime, anti-social behaviour and exploitation.
We want to make it accessible to everyone whatever their background. Working with VIVID Plus, we believe we can have a positive impact on our communities and make regular sporting activities accessible to young people in urban areas.
Ben Thompson, Cricket Development Officer
We have seen exponential growth of cricket in Hampshire cities over the past few years and we are really excited to bring this to the Basingstoke area.
With the support of Brighton Hill Community School, the project is already proving very popular, with 33 young people attending our very first session. We are looking forward to developing the Basingstoke Street project over the coming year.
Sam Moss, Urban Cricket Development Officer
With over 40 young people registered to attend the sessions, the project is developing quickly. Hampshire Cricket’s ‘Hawks City Academy’, the innovative inner-city talent pathway established in Southampton in November 2021, is set to launch a Basingstoke centre this year, utilising the existing relationship between Brighton Hill Community School and Hampshire Cricket Board.
The ‘Street’ sessions are now running every Tuesday at Brighton Hill Community School, 16:30-17:30 for ages 9-11 and 17:30-18:30 for ages 12-15. It’s free of charge, families are welcome and you can wear what you want (there is no need to have cricket attire). For more information and to book a place please contact Sam Moss at sam.moss@ageasbowl.com or call 07384 115633.
