30th September 2021
| Matt Thompson
Cricket Wales are delighted to confirm that the widely acclaimed parent expert Richard Shorter is to embark on a third series of workshops within the junior pathway over the next year. Since the programme started back in 2019/20, its provision has grown through collaboration to include and benefit parents from Welsh Gymnastics, Welsh Athletics, Hockey Wales and Badminton Wales in addition to Cricket.
Despite the challenges of the pandemic the series ran virtually last year, resulting in record attendances and things are set to continue over the next 7-8 months where parents will be able to tune into six highly engaging sessions which have the main objective of facilitating better outcomes for their children in their respective sports pathways.
Richard has over 20 years of working with parents from his days as a youth worker, and during his current life as a Baptist minister. He has delivered numerous parenting courses for local authorities and statutory agencies, as well as lecturing at universities including the teaching of trainee social work students about effective strategies for working with families.
Richard has also has significant experience within the sports sector having worked with the likes of Manchester United, England Rugby, the England & Wales Cricket Board, England Hockey, Saracens, Millfield School, Newcastle Falcons and Somerset Cricket. A public speaker in his own right, he recently featured on BBC Radio 5 Live to discuss the joys and challenges of sporting parents at the highest level.
The workshops for this year will continue via virtual means this year and will occur on the following dates:
November 11th 2021: Providing a HOME which nurtures potential.
December 9th 2021: The changing world of the sporting teenagers mind and body- how to adapt your parenting to your child's growth, changes and needs.
January 13th 2022: Expectations- when they are helpful, when they are not and how they can fuel sporting potential.
February 10th 2022: Navigating the opportunity and challenges of Social media and technology with your sporting children.
March 10th 2022: Listening for a change- how to have those tricky conversations which sport produces.
May 12th 2022: Sport Parent Case studies: looking at some our of famous athletes and how their parents were and were not helpful to them.
All sessions begin at 8pm, last one hour and are available for Mum's and Dad's. The session link for all sessions will be shared by each of the participating sports privately in the coming weeks.
Coaches will also be able to benefit from 4 ‘TED Talk’ style videos which will be available via their respective sports from November onwards. These will be based around the following themes:
- Coaching homes to nurture potential
- Case studies of good and bad parent engagement practice
- Listening for a change-how to have those tricky conversations which sport parents
- Managing everyone’s expectations- Parents, athletes and coaches.
Cricket Wales Head of Talent Pathway, Matt Thompson commented, “it’s great for us to be able to benefit again from Richard’s knowledge and expertise. He has a really refreshing delivery style which makes his content really engaging. Over the last few years the feedback from our pathway parents has been really positive and we want to continue to support our parents (and coaches) in some small way given the incredible job they do supporting their children.”
Parent Testimonials from the previous two series in Wales:
Parent 1: “The conversations before and after the game or training in the car!! I’ve found these to be a big change from what they used to be – they are now fun or a joy!”
Parent 2: “The sessions have re-emphasised the importance of resilience, mental health, positive attitudes, support and the need to reflect on how safe a space we create as parents for our kids to make mistakes.”
Parent 3: “It’s definitely helped me to motivate my child when they are down as well as supporting them mentally and physically.”
Parent 4: “As a result of the sessions I feel I ask more questions than what I used to, to try and give him responsibility to figure things out himself rather than just telling him.”
