Spencer ONE
On 25th September 2023, the ECB published details of further steps it will take to make cricket a more inclusive sport in response to the recent report by the Independent Commission for Equity in Cricket (ICEC).
ECB’s summary response is available here and the full response here.
The response details wide-ranging action aims to tackle discrimination and break down barriers for women and girls, people from lower socio-economic groups, and ethnically diverse communities.
Whilst the growth in our girls section and strength of our women’s teams puts us right at the forefront of the 75% increase in the total number of women’s and girls’ club teams since 2019 and we are working with the ECB and their new Women’s and Girls’ Champion partner, Metro Bank on a campaign to recruit volunteers and grow girls’ cricket, we still have work to do in attracting and retaining younger cricketers from the state sector and underrepresented groups.
Over the next 12 months, the ECB will develop a State School Action Plan as the ICEC recommends. The scope of this is currently being developed, but is expected to include:
Ways to increase the number of state primary and secondary school students playing cricket, especially those from lower socio-economic groups (LSEG) and the social impact of achieving this
How to better support talented state school players
Improving access for state school students to cricket facilities, training and coaching, competitions etc.
The outreach activities that we deliver already go some way to addressing elements of this, in particular hosting festivals and tournaments for Wandsworth Schools and coaching delivery with local primary schools and teachers but there is more we can and should be doing.
To tackle this head on, we are excited to launch Spencer ONE, a programme designed to create additional state primary partnerships to develop relationships of trust and co-operation. Spencer ONE (Outreach, Nurture, Engage) reflects our desire for greater inclusivity in cricket, and that we would like to achieve this through being ONE club and ONE community with ONE ethos, where we seek to provide a safe and friendly environment for all in which to play, watch and learn about cricket.
The Spencer ONE programme is structured with an established ring-fenced fund and will be run by a small independent committee reporting to the Executive. The plan will be to deliver more targeted outreach activity, providing coaching and development in schools, financial assistance where merited, and a warm welcome to Spencer with a mentor and buddy system, to those young people who would not otherwise have access to cricket. At the same time, a revamped Disability section will see full membership benefits extended and greater integration with the club.
We will leverage existing partnerships and networks alongside looking for access to new primary state schools to maximise our impact and chance of success. We are very excited about this programme, it builds on our solid outreach foundations and thriving boys and girls cricket sections.