The Islington Street Cricket Project won the NatWest No Boundaries award at the Chance to Shine awards last week.
The project, which runs on Saturdays at Sobell Leisure Centre, was recognised for their hard work supporting grassroots cricket and received their award from NatWest head of sponsorship & hospitality Martyn Wilson at Lord’s Cricket Ground.
The judging panel were impressed with how the Islington Street Cricket project has brought the sport to a new audience of children through its partnership with the Eritrean Youth Club.
The young people have taken to cricket and become fully dedicated to the game, with their enthusiasm growing along with a desire to improve their skills.
After receiving the award Mikey Thompson, Middlesex Cricket Board and Chance to Shine coach, said: “To win this award means so much to the kids, they’ve never experienced anything like this evening before.
“The children can learn so much from playing cricket. Cricket is educational, it will help their social skills. The project gives them a safe environment where they can play together.”
England legend Graham Gooch attended the event and said: “I’d like to congratulate the Islington Street project for their commitment to cricket and it was inspiring to hear about their cricketing journey.
“It’s been terrific to learn about the fantastic work that’s going on around the country to make cricket accessible to children and young people. Chance to Shine are working exceptionally hard to give opportunities to thousands of young people every year and it’s really paying off.”
Laura Cordingley, chief executive at Chance to Shine, added: “On behalf of everyone at Chance to Shine, I’d like to say a big congratulations to everyone involved in the Islington Street project. Their hard work, commitment and dedication to the sport over the past year has been brilliant and we are very proud to be associated with such an outstanding project.
“We believe cricket can have a significant positive impact on the lives of children and young people across the country and their story is a shining example of this.”
*The Chance to Shine annual awards, supported by NatWest, celebrates clubs, individuals and schools who help to spread the power of cricket and make the charity such a success.
Chance to Shine has been working since 2005 to reverse the decline of cricket in state schools. By providing coaching in schools and extra-curricular opportunities, the charity has reached more than four million young people, 46 per cent of whom are girls, in over 14,000 states schools across the country.
Chance to Shine Street is a free, fun and fast-paced version of the sport played with a tapeball – a tennis ball wrapped in electrical tape – where innings last 20 balls and no protective equipment is required.
Find out more at chancetoshine.org.
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