Clubs and NCB cash in with new funding
With the help of the Norfolk Cricket Board, a number of cricket clubs in the county have secured significant funding to invest in capital and development projects in the 2010 season. The NCB has advised on and supported around 20 club projects in the last 12 months, with some excellent projects taking shape as a result. Of particular note are two projects largely funded with ECB money. Old Buckenham CC and North Runcton CC hope to be using new artificial net facilities at their grounds during the 2010 season, after receiving £14k and £15k respectively for their projects.
Old Buckenham Captain Andy Austin said, “Our new 2 bay artificial nets [pictured, right] will be a fantastic addition to the whole club's practice facilities. Complementing the current grass nets that we have, the new ECB funded project will help us enormously with all coaching and training throughout the entire club, from the youth cricket that we run all the way through to our four senior sides.”
Clubs have also enjoyed considerable success with the Sport England Small Grants scheme, which unlike ECB funding, does not require clubs to be a Focus Club, but simply affiliated to the NCB. Norfolk Clubs who have had significant success with this funding stream recently include Brooke, Downham, Hethersett & Tas Valley, Vauxhall Mallards, Blundeston, Cromer, Fakenham, Norwich, Old Buckenham and Aylsham St Giles.
Kieron Tuck, Cricket Development Manager for Norfolk commented, “It’s great to see so many clubs putting together well planned and ambitious projects to develop their facilities and club programmes, and we’re delighted to support and advise them in how to plan and fund these improvements. The Sport England Small Grants Scheme has been particularly good for Norfolk clubs, with over £70k being pumped in to several Norfolk clubs through this, for projects as diverse as new nets, covers, bowling machines, coach development and schools coaching.”
He added, “There are of course several other key funding streams out there, and through these and the other funds mentioned earlier, we have advised, supported and applied for over £200k of funding for clubs and Norfolk cricket organisations over the last 18 months, covering a wide range of projects. We will continue to advise and support further applications in the coming year, indeed several are already in progress.”
Should any clubs have any queries on club funding, they are advised to visit the Club Funding section of the NCB website or contact the Cricket Development Manager, Kieron Tuck (contact details listed in the contacts section of this website).