Colchester United Community Foundation (CUCF) are working in partnership with Essex Cricket in the Community to deliver free to access street cricket sessions in Greenstead at Colchester Academy School. The programme is funded by the charity Chance to Shine, that aims to give all children an opportunity to play, learn and develop through cricket.
On Friday 10th November, Colchester United first-team goalkeeper Sam Hornby and Essex Cricketer Ben Allison visited the weekly Friday evening session. This was a hugely inspirational occasion for the young people at the session with Sam and Ben joining in with play, answering questions and signing lots of autographs.
We spoke to CUCF Health and Inclusion Manager and Street Cricket Deliverer, Ed King, about the Colchester Street Session and the recent player visit, he said “I have absolutely loved being involved in the Chance to Shine Street Cricket project. It has been amazing to give young people the chance to access cricket, who may not otherwise have had this opportunity. None of our participants have ever played for a cricket club before, their only experiences of cricket have been during school PE. It was great to see how excited the young people were to meet Sam and Ben, who were a both a credit to their clubs”.
Essex Cricket produced a video from the evening, this can be viewed via the link, the video includes interviews with Sam and Ben: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EbQkkJqBqHE
Another amazing aspect of this session is its inclusivity and the interaction it sees between the participants. One regular participant is Stephanie - who has Autism. Stephanie has found participating in school PE increasingly inaccessible but she has now found an opportunity to enjoy sport at the Friday Street Cricket group. Essex Cricket have been so inspired by Stephanie and her story that they asked her parents to share what a difference the Chance to Shine Street Cricket project is making for their family.
Stephanie's Story - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tktxh6uM09g
CUCF run their sessions on Friday evenings between 5.30pm-6.30pm at Colchester Academy School, the sessions are open for 8-13 year olds and can be booked via this link - https://colchester-united-cf.classforkids.io/term/369
