ECB Launches £1.2 million Diversity Fund

The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) has announced a £1.2 million funding boost to recruit 2,000 South Asian female mentors to help develop the next generation of women cricketers.

Earlier this year, the ECB outlined ambitious plans in its efforts to expand the female coaching network and transform the way cricket engages with British South Asian communities and minorities writ large. The Action Plan includes the adoption of the Rooney Rule, which mandates teams and governing bodies to interview at least one BAME candidate for all senior positions. 

During the consultation process for the plan, 30% of people surveyed said that more female coaches would encourage more South Asian women and girls to play the game.

The fund is supported in part by a recent National Lottery grant awarded by Sport England - an acknowledgement of the notable progress already achieved via the South Asian Action Plan. The money will be used to retain, develop and expand cricket’s female volunteer network.

Looking ahead to 2019 when the UK will host the ICC Cricket World Cup, the latest influx of volunteers will work across seven cities with a high South Asian population, Birmingham, Bradford, London, Leeds, Leicester, Manchester and Nottingham.

The volunteer activators will combine coaching and mentoring to inspire and support the next generation of cricketers and will help support the delivery of All Stars Cricket, ECB’s entry-level cricket programme for 5-8 year-olds

Commenting on the growing momentum behind the South Asian Action Plan, Kamlesh Patel, ECB non-executive director said: “When we launched the Action Plan six months ago, we knew that there was a lot of hard work to be done and that a lot of people within the British South Asian community were counting on us to deliver on our promises.

“I’m pleased to say that in a relatively short space of time, progress has been made in a range of different areas including identifying our first Urban Cricket Centre and commissioning and installing 58 non-turf pitches. The announcement of funding from Sport England shows that we are in a great position to deliver on another element of our plan.”

 As originally reported by the Sport Industry Group.