Football and cricket came together for a special Team England celebration day at The Kia Oval as part of the Street Child United initiative.
Team England will be represented by the Surrey Cricket Foundation at the Street Child Cricket World Cup (SCCWC) in India this September ahead of the ICC ODI Cricket World Cup. They were joined by the team who took part in the Street Child Football World Cup from the Everton in the Community programme.
After presentations from the two groups, the young people enjoyed some team-building activities, as well as taking part in some cricket and football sessions. They were also treated to a behind the scenes tour of The Kia Oval, taking in some of the history of the ground and visiting the player’s dressing rooms.
The young people from Football Team England shared their experiences of the Street Child Football World Cup and offered advice to the aspiring cricketers hoping to represent their country in September.
22 teams from across the world will take part in the second edition of the Street Child Cricket World Cup ahead of the ICC World Cup 2023 hosted in India. The street-connected young people aged 14-17 will take part in a mixed-gender cricket tournament, a festival of arts and a congress on children’s rights.
In 2022, the Surrey Cricket Foundation were selected to develop and train a side to represent Team England in the SCCWC. As well as developing their cricketing skills, the young people have also been taking part in employability workshops and educational sessions to support their wider personal development. The programme is sponsored by Ayre Associates Ltd, who are supporting the programme financially and practically via work placements.
Elliott Rousen, Diversity and Inclusion officer at Surrey Cricket Foundation, said “This was a great opportunity for our young cricketers to find out more about the experience of representing Team England. The Street Child United programme is having a powerful impact on the young people taking part in the programme, not only in their cricketing but, crucially, their overall development and wellbeing.”
John Rawlinson, from Everton in the Community who managed the Football Team England said “It was a fantastic day to come down to London. For most of the team, it was the first time they’d been to a cricket ground and was a great experience. We wanted to get the teams involved with each other and get to know what we did out in Qatar. More or less like handing the torch over to the Surrey Cricket Foundation so they can go over to India in the summer.”
