ABOUT US

Background

Ben Rhydding Cricket Club was established in 1921.  The Club has since played in several senior leagues, including the Dales Council League, the Bradford League and has fielded two teams in the Airedale & Wharfedale Senior League since election to the League in 2000.   In addition the Club provides social cricket by way of "friendly fixtures" on Sunday afternoons.

In 2004 the Club took steps to re-establish a Junior Section.  In Season 2006 the Club fielded teams at U/13, U/15 (2 teams) and U/16 (Girls) levels.  Season 2007 will see the addition of a team at U/11 level.

The Club recognised that its future lay in the re-establishment of a Junior Section.  The approach has been to provide the supporting infrastructure via ECB qualified coaches with an emphasis on providing the right environment for children of all abilities to develop individual skills as well as teamwork.  Child Welfare Officers are appointed and CRB carried out in accordance with ECB Safe Hands Policy.

In May 2004 we considered that the infrastructure was in place and advertised in the local press. Just 3 children attended the first practice session. However over the course of the summer numbers increased as we maintained our policy of developing skills and encouraging teamwork.  Two years on we now have a membership of 87 children with an age range from 7 through to 16 all of whom come from the Ilkley and Ben Rhydding area, supported by 10 qualified coaches each of whom has funded his/her own training. 

As previously mentioned, the Club fields Under 11’s, 13's, 15 and Under 17’s boys' teams in the Airedale Junior League. We are also very proud that we have the only Girls under 16 Team in the immediate local area.  
The next stage of our development as a club will be to establish teams at under 9 levels based on the work we have put in on skills development.

The club currently offers coaching to juniors on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday with junior matches being played on Friday evenings and Sunday mornings.

Senior League matches are played on Saturday afternoon, with Friendly fixtures taking place on Sunday afternoons. 

The success of the Club’s approach to developing youngsters through the emphasis on skills and teamwork has led to the rapid growth in junior membership. 

The Club has already taken the necessary action to increase the number of grass pitches that are available for Season 2007 in order to meet the obligations that arise from fielding so many Junior and Senior teams.

Our vision is to have 2 permanent framed net structures. These will be suited just off the field of play. The practice surface will be entirety synthetic. The estimated cost of which is attached with our application

The Club’s long term goal is clear; to promote cricket to all abilities and ensure locally that club contributes towards the Governments PESSCL targets of 2 hour sport participation delivered by local clubs.

The Club is currently in the process of applying for the ECB "Clubmark" scheme. This has only currently been awarded to 500 clubs nationally. 

The Club is committed to ensuring that equity is incorporated across all aspects of its development.  Sports Equity is about fairness in sports, equality of access, recognising inequalities and taking steps to address them. It’s about changing the culture and structure of sport to ensure it becomes equally accessible to everyone in society.

The club respects the rights, dignity and worth of every person, and will treat everyone equally within the context of their sport, regardless of age, gender, race, ethnicity, religious belief, sexuality or social/economic status.

The club is committed to everyone having the right to enjoy cricket in an environment free from the threat of intimidation, harassment and abuse.

The Club’s constitution recognises that members have a responsibility to oppose discriminatory behaviour and promote equality of opportunity

The Club has been partners with the Ilkley Summer Festival since its inception, offering a full weeks "cricket camp" where children between the ages of 6 - 13 years are welcome to come along and learn the basic skills of the game. This event is supervised by fully qualified ECB (Level II) coaches.  The event is extremely popular and has grown year on year. However the number of places that can be made available is limited by the current facilities.  A waiting list is maintained in the run up to the event, and parents pre-book up to a year in advance.