Cricket in Wales Bouyant, Growing & Looking Ahead

13th December 2024 | Mark Frost

Cricket in Wales is in a good place and ready to further grow in years to come. Thanks to all clubs in Wales feeding back via the club audit which shows that the game has progressed again not thus in the 2024 season but also over the recent five-year period. Here s summary of the key areas of progress:

Senior Cricket:

• In 2024, male and female numbers are slightly up, all teams slightly down (mid-week and Sunday) Saturday and women’s both up slightly. In the last five years there has been an increase of 34% in overall reported teams.

Growing Club’s Juniors via National Programmes:

• All stars and Dynamos have transformed many clubs in Wales over the last five years (growth of 58% of juniors).  2024 has been a record year despite the early year kit issues. Figures were boosted with summer free schemes to support low-income areas. Girls’ sign-ups featured strongly at 28.7% (another record figure) as well as the highest ECB dynamos sign ups.

Training Volunteers:

• Training Volunteers: Supporting clubs in recruiting and developing volunteers remains a cornerstone of our strategy to drive sustainable growth at all levels. Over the past 12 months, we have emphasised connecting with junior leads across Wales through online clinics, gaining deeper engagement and collaboration. See junior lead webinar here.
• Volunteer Growth: Since 2019, clubs have reported a significant 170% increase in volunteers, as shown in our annual audit. This growth has been instrumental in delivering national programs like All Stars, ensuring their success and expanding grassroots participation. For all our courses please visit here.
• Continuous Professional Development (CPD): This year, we delivered a series of CPD sessions both online and in person, with over 200 attendees benefiting from these opportunities. These sessions have helped volunteers, coaches, and club representatives to refine their skills, share best practices, and stay updated on new developments in the sport. For more details see here.
• Empowering Female Volunteers: A key focus has been increasing the involvement of women across various roles, including activators, coaches, officials, and coach developers. This has been achieved through several targeted initiatives. Female-Only Courses: Providing dedicated spaces for women to train and build confidence. Girls' Cricket Coaching Courses: Introducing programs tailored to inspire and equip coaches for girls' cricket. Collaborations with ECB and ACO: Partnering to develop a new training initiative for officials, broadening opportunities for female participation. For more details see here.
• Courses for scorers and umpires have changed considerably with more change to come, have a look here for umpires and here for scorers.
• This combined effort reflects not just the progress of the past year but also the cumulative achievements over the last five years, setting a strong foundation for the future.

Transitional Junior Age Group Teams:

• We have lots of young people in our entry levels of cricket e.g. all stars and dynamos yet we must create even more age group teams so that children can learn to play and stay in the game. We’ve seen success here in the last two seasons and while the long-term intention is for two transitional teams at U9s and U11s in each junior section, the audit shows healthy growth i.e.: -
• U9 teams up 45% since 2022
• U11 teams up 37% since 2021
• All junior teams up 17.6% since 2022
• There are still significant numbers of clubs with a junior section but without a team at these age groups (53 U9: 35 U11).
• All junior teams have increased by 20% in the last five years.

Girls’ Cricket – Sustaining and growing sections & teams.

• 32% of affiliated clubs now have a girls’ team/ section (increase from 6% in 2018).
• very successful large secondary school festival programme (nearly 3,000 girls engaged)

Women’s Cricket

• Women’s teams have grown again (sections from 7%-57% in 6 years’ time) and while there has been a transition from softball to hardball teams, this has outweighed the reduction in softball teams.
• There has been a similar increase in clubs with both a girls’ and women’s section.

Disability Cricket

• 3 Super 1’s Community hubs being delivered in Wales in Conwy, Cardiff & Wrexham providing weekly sessions for 12-25 year olds.
• ALN Schools programme delivered in all areas of Wales including Table Cricket & Softball Cricket.
• 7 Disability Champion Cricket Clubs as part of the ECB scheme.
• Increased funding from Lord Taverner’s to deliver even more in 2025 in this area.

Diversity:

• There have been increases in the proportions of females and ethnically diverse club members involved in playing the game and running (committees). Senior membership has changed from 8-16% and juniors 6-11%.
• There has been a 31% increase in clubs with all junior sections plus girls/women’s sections i.e. offering cricket for all sections of their communities.
• For clubs with both girls and women’s’ sections there has been a 36% increase.

Play-Cricket

• 100% adoption of PlayCricket (especially at junior level = 156 clubs) is the ultimate goal and currently this has shifted from 125 to 132 junior club sections on PC.
• Junior teams on Play Cricket have risen from 442 in 2023, to 494 in 2024, 11% rise.
• Girls’ Sections on Play Cricket: girls’ teams have risen on PC modestly (67-73) and sections from 48 to 55. The newer areas of the game haven’t quite caught up with embracing PlayCricket.

Schools

• Cricket Wales development coaches have been delivering school cricket sessions all year round thanks to the valued partnership with Chance to Shine. The partnership supports in ensuring Cricket is in playgrounds, offering our game to those children who may not get the opportunity to play. Over 350 schools were offered a programme of teaching. Our Programmes deliver more than just cricket they have a wider social positive impact across the local communities.  One of our team Paul Rowe details the impact of his sessions are having a key school in Newtown Mid Wales. Have a look at this brilliant film and also this Chance to Shine award winning primary school of the year Ysgol Bryn Gwal

Non-Mainstream Cricket

• The roll out of street projects has been across Wales with 15 hubs supported by Chance to Shine. The Wicketz schemes (in SE Wales) are seen by Lords Taverners as exemplars.
• The change to cricket around Equity Diversity and Inclusion has been really positively embraced by cricket clubs across Wales. While there are lots of good club examples have a look at these three clubs.
• The work to make the game more accessible was evidenced its our first EDI external report and a commitment to producing evidence of this work embedded into some clubs.

Facility Development

• 2023 & 2024 has seen over £5,000,000 invested in community cricket across Wales.
• 26 grounds received Pitch Power assessments as part of the Grass Pitch Improvement Programme with 4 already received investment ready to improvement quality and standards in 2025.
• 6 New Non-Turf Pitches
• 10 New or Refurbished Outdoor Practice Facilities
• 18 Projects focused on improving ground and pitch Maintenace
• Introduction of regular grounds maintenance workshops – 140 volunteers engaged
• 26 Projects Tackling Climate Change
• Sustainability Pilot in Torfaen with 3 clubs participating – over £100,000 invested into technologies to improve carbon footprint working with ECB, Sport Wales and Torfaen Council
• 17 projects improving off field facilities e.g. new club houses, extensions, toilet upgrades, installation of cubicle showers
• Strong partnerships continue to flourish with Cymru Football Foundation and Welsh Government improving facilities across Wales.
• Capital Investment Project in partnership with Sport Wales and Welsh Government to improve facilities at Swansea Mosque

Safeguarding

• A Deputy Safeguarding Lead has joined the team one day a week and is focusing on proactive support for our clubs across Wales.

• For Clubs, a self-audit tool has been developed and piloted with three clubs from across Wales, Club Safeguarding Officers that have been involved will be sharing their experience in 2025 . 
• All bar 2 clubs have Safe Hands Management System active, and officers continue to monitor and support clubs to utilise the system to help give clubs reassurance that volunteers are fully compliant. Case management has gone hand in hand with support for each relevant club.
• Training and Education Delivery
  • Internal staff have received a full day of safeguarding training.
  • Four Club Safeguarding Officer sessions were delivered with another nine planned for early in 2025.
  • Three Talent Pathway specific sessions have been delivered with further sessions planned for early 2025.

Pathway

Regional Programme

• Another successful summer season with residential festivals in particular a resounding success.
• Glamorgan’s CAG (County Age Group) teams continued to perform well as the programme transitions players into it.
• Player & Parent Surveys hugely positive from a cricketing and holistic perspective (98.6% felt accepted and welcomed for who they are within the programme)
• Increased provision for 24/25 winter means even greater value than last year

Wales NC

• Whilst 2024 wasn’t a great season on the whole for Wales NC across three formats, there was a good integration of key Glamorgan youngsters to facilitate their development. T
• Wales NC North had a productive season with many tight games across summer – there have now been 6 North Walians to represent the senior Wales in the last 3 seasons alone.

Disability Performance

• The main objective of staying in the top division was achieved whilst the programme has been expanding and developing with a more professional approach.
• On the back off his run filled season Michael Weatherby hhas been invited to the England Disability winter programme

Conclusion

Much has been achieved in the last year not to mention the last five years!

We cannot forget COVID and how clubs did so well to keep the lights on in terms of playing in 2020 AND bouncing back healthily in 2021.

The new and forthcoming strategy will take on board the data from the club audit and will listen to the network as we look to ensure the robustness of clubs and non-mainstream growth across all of Wales. 

In 2025, Cricket Wales will be seeking to establish itself as a Foundation and there will be more for the network about this in the new year.

With the added spur of the professionalising of the women’s game with Glamorgan and the trends that we have experienced in clubs, the game in Wales is in a good shape for the future.

December 2024