The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) is to undertake its largest single project to improve facilities at recreational level, thus helping it to fulfil the initial element of its National Strategy pledge. A total of £1.45m will be injected into cricket pitch provision and upgrade throughout England and Wales thanks to generous financial assistance from Sport England, NatWest and the Cricket Foundation.

The two-year scheme will see 799 flicx pitches made available and 260 grass pitches upgraded. Allocations of flicx pitches and grass pitch upgrades will be made to the 38 County Boards according to the numbers of schools and clubs with junior sections in each area. The most needy areas will receive greater financial assistance over the two years with each County Board responsible for who receives the awards in their region.

Sport England is the major financial contributor to the project with a two-year lottery grant totalling £944,550. This grant is earned thanks to initial funding raised from NatWest, which has invested £250,000 into the provision of flicx pitches as part of its agreement to sponsor the NatWest Series, a £40,000 grant from the Cricket Foundation, and a further £215,450 being raised through club and school contributions.

"This deal represents a huge step forward for cricket development," said ECB Director of Development, Keith Pont. "Good quality pitches are essential for the nurturing of good quality cricketers, and this is the first time that the ECB has been able to support the improvement of grass pitches at recreational level. We anticipate that 7,500 people will benefit from playing on improved grass surfaces.

"Flicx pitches enable us to take cricket to areas previously unsuited to stage games. We anticipate that upwards of 20,000 people, including 2,400 girls and 1,000 people with disabilities, will be introduced to cricket through these flicx pitches."

ECB pitch advisors will be employed to assess the pitches and recommend remedial work. Fifteen advisors have already been appointed, 16 more will be appointed in October and a final total of 45 advisors will be in place for the start of the 2002 cricket season.

The flicx pitch is a revolutionary mobile plastic cricket pitch which will enable Kwik Cricket and Inter Cricket to be played on many surfaces previously deemed unsuitable for any form of the game. Developed originally for township use in South Africa, the mobile units can be transported amongst secondary schools, primary schools and local clubs to maximise use. The programme will ensure a further 1,060 development projects for cricket nationwide.

© ECB