2nd Place in the Secondary School of the Year at Chance to Shine Awards.....
Congratulations to The Nobel School in Stevenage, who were runner's up in The Secondary School of the Year category at Chance to Shine's National School Awards, held on Wednesday 7th October at the Nomura International Offices in London.
The Stevenage School narrowly missed out on the top prize to Flegg High School from Great Yarmouth in Norfolk. However this takes nothing away from the fantastic contribution that the school have made to cricket in the county of over the last 12 months and follows on from one of their students success in 2014, when Holly Grace won the National Participant of the Year awards at last years event.
The Nobel School Satellite Club has made a positive impact, specifically on an accessible and successful club link for girls. The take up of girls' into club cricket from the satellite club has been exceptional with Stevenage Cricket Club now forming a successful Under 13s girls section. They have gone on to win games against some well established teams in Hertfordshire. In addition, there has been a successful integration and participation with the boys teams at Stevenage CC, with many of the girls representing the boys team in addition to the girls u13 team.
The satellite club has been for all students at the school and has created an inclusive environment where all students feel secure, valued and accepted. Students all have a role to play in every session – they are participants, leaders and coaches. They all support each other regardless of ability, gender, disability, ethnic background or age, however the biggest take up to club cricket has been with the girls.
It is regularly commented upon by others how well the girls have taken to the sport and it is now spurring some of the boys teams on. The boys engagement level has been boosted as a result. The success of the satellite club has helped ensure that cricket clubs are delivered at the club for the whole of the academic year, again with high levels of participation from both male and female students.
The girls simply love their cricket. The team ethic amongst them is truly special. They encourage and motivate each other not only on the pitch but also in day to day life at school. There are some really close bonds and relationships between the girls which are evident when watching and listening to them. The respect they have for their teammates, cricket coaches and teachers is extremely high which makes it a pleasure to continue to work with them. As well as the girls now being active members of the club their families are also active members. There is certainly a fan club wherever they go and it is encouraging to see such positive and constructive conversations going on especially between some of the dads and their daughters on the boundary.
Many of the older students have completed their Cricket Activators Award as part of the satellite club. They now officiate and score many of the tournaments that have taken place locally including the Chance to Compete tournaments, Primary School Games competitions and local district tournaments. This has helped to build a positive ethos amongst students of recognition, role modeling, fair play and team ethic. Everyone at The Nobel School is in it together, working together with the local club, Stevenage CC to build the enjoyment of cricket and development a foundation for sustainable levels of participation for generations to come.
The Nobel School and Stevenage Cricket Satellite Club has provided the opportunity to increase the wider partnership working between the school, club, local authority, NGB, SSP and CSP. There was an element of partnership working prior to the setting up of the project, however the development of the project has enabled all partners to take advantage of the support and resources available from each other.
If you would like to read about the whole event and see the list of winners, please check out the article of the Chance to Shine website.