The Playing for Success Study Support Centre, a new initiative that was launched jointly between Somerset County Cricket Club and Somerset County Council earlier in the year is now fully operational and attracting almost one and fifty young people to the County Ground each week.

The centre operates in the Centre for Excellence at the County Ground, and is open on four evenings a week.

Between 3.30 and 5pm the centre caters for primary aged pupils from St Andrew's,Halcon, North Town and Staplegrove Primary Schools, whilst between 5.15 and 6.45pm secondary aged pupils from Ladymead, Heathfield, St Augustines and Castle School make use of the centre.

Each pupil who attends is issued with one of the Playing for Success Study Centre document wallets with the strapline `Reaching beyond your boundaries' across the cover.

Simon Lowe, who is the centre manager is absolutely delighted with the way that things have taken off.

Earlier this week he told me: "This whole venture shows the vision that chief executive Peter Anderson and cricket development officer Andrew Moulding have in helping to promote not just Somerset but cricket in general to a wider audience. This activity is attracting nearly one hundred and fifty youngsters inside the ground many who have never ever been here before which has to be good news. It certainly isn't all doom and gloom here despite what some others might say."

As part of their programme each of the school groups has been taken on a grand tour of the ground an experience that Mr Lowe told me `wowed' most of the youngsters, who were then invited to write about their favourite view of the ground.

During the next few weeks the programmes of work being undertaken by the youngsters will focus largely upon the Ashes series between England and Australia that gets underway in November.

The Centre has been well supported by the players themselves and in recent weeks Andrew Caddick, Marcus Trescothick and Ian Blackwell have all been involved.

Mr Lowe told me: "All of the players and the coaching staff have been fantastic. They have come along and reacted in a really positive way which is very pleasing."

At the end of the ten week course that the youngsters are following there will be a `graduation' ceremony, and a chance to play cricket in the Centre of Excellence.

Mr Lowe concluded: "We have got off to a great start and everything augers well for the future. Sport is big part of people's lives and we are here to harness this and help young people to learn from it. My aim is to become the best Playing For Success Study Support Centre from the eighteen First Class cricketing counties, and we are already well on our way to becoming this."

© SOMERSET