Paul Smith Visits Get Started with Cricket
A great week of cricket and ECB’s Young
Leaders Award workshops ended with a visit from Paul Smith, former
Warwickshire cricketer and Prince's Trust Ambassador
Early spring saw the first
ever Prince’s Trust ‘Get Started with Cricket’ course which was run
in partnership with Warwickshire County Cricket Club at the
Edgbaston Cricket Centre. Get Started is a one week course that
uses cricket to engage young people, enabling them to achieve a
qualification and build key work-place skills such as confidence,
motivation, communication and teamwork.
12 young people aged between 16 and 25 from communities across
Birmingham joined this new programme. Throughout the week they
worked towards the ECB’s Young Leaders Award which they all
achieved, as well as a First Aid certificate and workshops to help
them plan for the future. They will receive support and
progression advice from Prince’s Trust staff to help them access
further education, training, volunteering or employment
opportunities. The programme was funded jointly by private
enterprise and Sport England.
We were delighted to work with The Prince’s
Trust to use cricket to inspire local young people. They worked
very hard with our coaching staff throughout the week and really
developed their skills. We wish them every success for the
future.
Nick Archer, Manager of
the Edgbaston Cricket Centre
A great week concluded
with a fiercely contested 6-a-side match and a visit from Paul
Smith, Prince’s Trust Ambassador and former Warwickshire cricketer,
who spoke to the group about their plans for the future and
presented them with their achievement certificates.
'The Get Started with Cricket programme has
been brilliant and exactly what I needed to build my
confidence. I would definitely recommend it to others. It has been
a life changing experience'.
Lewis Bishop