Summary
The Challenge
To use cricket to promote social cohesion and create opportunities in diverse communities affected by anti-social behaviour and youth crime. With this in mind, ‘Chance to Shine Street’ was launched to bring a fun and meaningful activity to thousands of young people in inner-city areas.
Consequently, the ECB cricket charity chose Calacus, due to their previous strong work history with charities and expertise in sports PR, to promote cricket to under-privileged South Asian youngsters specifically in the Walthamstow area.
The Solution
Calacus staged an event with Pakistan international fast bowler Wahab Riaz, taking place during the 2016 England vs Pakistan Test series in the UK. As a player, Wahab proved very popular amongst under-privileged South Asian youngsters, sharing hints and tips about the game of cricket. In addition, he joined in a game of tape-ball cricket with the youths, using a tennis ball wrapped in electrical tape along with teaching a masterclass net session and signing autographs, much to the delight of the children.
Wahab also engaged with national, sport and local media to encourage the accessibility of cricket to young people from all walks of life and to deliver Chance to Shine’s key message, that no matter where they live, every child should have the opportunity to enjoy cricket.
The Results
- Top tier highly-targeted quality coverage was secured across broadcast, national dailies, sport and local media
- 40 children attended the event
- Direct involvement in increasing the number of South Asian children attending weekly training sessions at their local tape ball club in Walthamstow
- Increasing the three million children plus playing cricket through the charity in some of the most disadvantaged urban areas of the UK
