Newton CC Volunteer It Yourself
NEWTON Cricket Club are hoping to become a hub for the local community after a volunteer-inspired project helped to transform their outdoor social space.
The Tameside-based club enlisted the support of Community Interest Company Volunteer It Yourself (VIY) to construct a new decking area for members and spectators at their Barmhouse Lane venue.
The project took three weeks to complete and was spearheaded by a group of young volunteers from Active Tameside, St Thomas More RC College and Tameside Youth Justice. The young people had the opportunity to learn construction and work-readiness skills with the help of the VIY trade mentors.
Newton Chairman Mark Williams was thrilled with the final outcome and was full of praise for all those who contributed.
He said: “We can’t thank VIY and all the young people involved enough. The finished project is looking great and is going to be a massive addition to our club, not only on match days but giving us the potential to host other events for the community.
“VIY were an absolute pleasure to deal with from start to finish. Our initial meeting with Matt and Saj was very informative and they went through all our suggested projects before narrowing them down to the ones that would be most beneficial for the young people of Tameside and our club.
“The extraordinary attention to detail took this project to another level, not just the craftmanship but also the communication throughout the build. We were kept informed with how the project was progressing and any little issues that needed addressing.”
Mark added: “This project is part of a very worthy scheme providing young people from Tameside with invaluable skills and experience. We at Newton CC are very proud of being part, in a small way, of helping provide some of these opportunities.”
The project at Newton CC was the second of its kind in Cheshire following a similar scheme delivered at Stalybridge Cricket Club earlier this summer. VIY are one of several partners working to deliver the Inspiring Generations strategy, a 10-point action plan for cricket in Greater Manchester.
Evan was one of the young people who worked on the Newton project, gaining a City and Guild accreditation in carpentry, and his mother was thrilled with his contribution.
She said: “Evan enjoyed his time at the cricket club and loved the hands-on experience. It’s given him a great sense of achievement knowing that he has completed some great work, and he has said that it’s given him some guidance on what to do when he leaves school so thanks so much for the opportunity.”
Inspiring Generations runs from June 2022 until December 2024, and has been put in place to use cricket to improve young people’s lives and create stronger, healthier communities across the Borough.
To find out more about the 10-Point Action Plan and VIY’s planned projects in the region and opportunities for local young people to get involved, contact info@teamviy.com.