Chance to Shine President and co-founder Lord King was invited to film a feature for

Speaking at Oasis Johanna Primary School in South London, the former Governor of the Bank of England spoke passionately about the merits of cricket for young people: 

Like these children, I too learned to play cricket in a school playground. Mine was in Yorkshire in the primary school in Old Town on the moors above Hebden Bridge. Today, the spirit is the same playing in a team and competing to win. A pretty good preparation for the world of work.

Good schools know that this is an important part of a complete education. But over the years it has become more and more difficult for state schools to provide opportunities for children to take part in extracurricular activities, whether they be sport, music, drama or a host of other ways in which children can find themselves.

That is why a decade ago the charity Chance to Shine was started. It set out to regenerate cricket in state schools. Why? Because to learn how to win and how to lose, that teams comprise people with different skills and abilities, and that respect for the opposition is an essential part of competition are the spirit of cricket and indeed life itself. There is more to education than the national curriculum. More than any other sport cricket crosses social, ethnic and gender divides.

Chance to Shine has now reached over 11,000 state schools and more than 3 million children have been given the chance to learn cricket and play competitive matches. It has helped to build confidence, motivation and aspirations of children up and down the country in urban and rural areas. Almost one half of the children involved are girls and the England players men and women have given generously of their time to visit schools and raise aspirations. More than anything else, our duty is to help schools show children that life has so much to offer.

Chance to Shine is not aiming to produce the next England star but to use cricket to broaden educational experience. Ask not what these children can do for cricket but what cricket can do for our children.