With cricket fever growing in the county thanks to the Investec Ashes series this week, clubs at grassroots level are benefiting from a unique sports legacy fund in Nottinghamshire. 

Following London 2012, Nottinghamshire County Council set up a £1.7m Sports Legacy Fund from its own budgets to give a boost to a range of grassroots sports – including cricket. 

And with the First Ashes Test taking place this week at Trent Bridge, more than 25 local clubs are already using the funding they have received from the county council to invest in the future of the sport. 

The fund has been hailed as a trail blazer by Lord Sebastian Coe who has said it is a ‘wonderful example of a local legacy fund’. 

Councillor John Knight, Committee Chairman for Culture at Nottinghamshire County Council said: “The whole county council was fully behind plans for a Sports Legacy Fund to support grassroots sport in the county. With the Ashes taking place this week, it is heartening to see how many cricket clubs the legacy fund has been able to support in our local communities.” 

Tracey Francis, Head of Community Sport, at Nottinghamshire County Cricket Club, said: “We want to make cricket the sport of choice in Nottinghamshire and also protect the future of the sport in the county – this legacy fund helps to achieve these aims and has our wholehearted backing.” 

Nottinghamshire County Council set up three different funding streams to support different types of schemes: 

• Kick Start Rapid worth between £500 and £2,000 
• Kick Start grants of between £500 and £10,000 
• Game Changer grants of between £10,000 and £50,000. 

In order to be successful with their bids for the funding, sports clubs had to demonstrate how the funding will be used to support increased participation and/or improve the performance of club members. 

As well as providing direct financial support, the clubs were also given advice and support to lever in additional matched funding from other sources for some of the larger schemes. 

Nottinghamshire County Council Sports Legacy funding awards for cricket teams, and a little about their successful bid for funds is detailed below: 

Kick Start funding: 
Hucknall Cricket Club (Ashfield): 
To extend the current pavilion with a new garage for machinery and new changing facilities for the home team and match officials which will allow internal alterations of the pavilion to improve changing facilities for the away team and ladies toilets. This will also allow the lounge to be extended. £5,000 

Clumber Park Cricket Club (Bassetlaw): To improve pavilion facilities, provide new secure ground equipment storage and wicket preparation/protection on the ground. This will improve our club pavilion facilities, protect our expensive ground equipment and protect our playing area from adverse weather. All club members will benefit from these improvements. £7,307 

Rockware Glass Sports and Social Club (Bassetlaw): It will be used to revamp the netting area for cricket practice for all year use targeting the schools, college and established players to develop a junior section also ensuring cricket is played at every opportunity. £6,969 

Ordsall Bridon Cricket Club (Bassetlaw): The Kick Start Award will be used to upgrade ageing equipment for the maintenance of the Ground and forms part of a much bigger plan to upgrade the Club as a whole. We will be looking to buy a new roller and mowers to improve the ground for the two senior teams and many junior teams that we currently have. £8,000 

Attenborough Cricket Club (Broxtowe): Improve outdoor & indoor training facilities to improve provision for able bodied & those with disabilities, of all ages - male & female. Install new artificial training matting & base for training nets, outdoors. Develop/refurbish indoor training area/install training resources in Pavilion of r coaching & link this with the outdoor training provision. £9,800 

Kimberley Institute Cricket Club (Broxtowe): To make long-lasting improvements to the quality and availability of the cricket squares on both the grounds that Kimberley Institute Cricket club uses for its home matches and for coaching. The aim is to improve the quality and amount of cricket played on each of them. £3,363 

Awsworth Village Cricket Club (Broxtowe): For the purchase of a new mower with fine turf attachments in order to maintain the cricket square. The current mower does not meet with the health and safety requirements of HAVS hand arm vibration syndrome and can no longer be used. £6,304 

Gedling Colliery Cricket Club (Gedling): We plan to purchase a second-hand outfield mower and a storage unit. This will enable us to mow our own outfield and ensure a better quality outfield. The storage unit also offers the chance to make some of our Club equipment and kit accessible to a wider number of people. £3,372 

Mansfield and Pleasley Cricket Club (Mansfield): 
We have just completed a project called adopt a wicket which involves partnership with ECB and Queen Elizabeth’s Academy School at Mansfield. It is our new home for our junior section and we need new training and coaching equipment. £2,000 

Thurgarton Cricket Club (Newark and Sherwood): The award will be used to fund the construction of a digital score box. The specification will bring the scoreboard up to current standards and will incorporate features to assist with hosting cricket for the visually impaired. £10,000 

Caythorpe Cricket Club (Newark and Sherwood): To provide a safe all-weather 3 lanes practise area for members to develop skills under the supervision of qualified coaches. It is vital than the younger members 10-25 years of age have a facility available when they want to enable them to work on their technique in a safe environment. £10,000 

Coddington and Winthorpe Cricket Club (Newark and Sherwood): The Kickstart award would be used to install an artificial cricket strip to the existing square at our cricket ground. This would be advantageous to both our junior teams and adult teams. The installation would increase safety for our juniors due to the consistent bounce an artificial strip provides. £8,856 

Hoveringham Cricket Club (Newark and Sherwood): For the provision of mobile wicket covers £2,960 

Newark Ransome and Marles Cricket Club (Newark and Sherwood): The effect a new mower would have on the grounds would be immense on the facilities available to players and also save us money which can be reinvested back into the club and in particular the junior section. £7,000 

Fiskerton Cricket Club (Newark and Sherwood): The kick start award would enable us to increase participation/use, consolidate on existing use, maximise our revenue income streams, ensure our long term sustainability, ensure that our pitch is available for maximum usage, address some issues of health and safety and support our comprehensive senior and junior coaching programme. £7,000 

Balderton Cricket Club (Newark and Sherwood): The kick start award will be used to purchase the Devon Malcolm Concertina cricket net and coaching equipment to be used by coaches within the club and local community. £3,917 

Plumtree Cricket Club (Rushcliffe): 
We have obtained ECB grant and loan funding of £160,000 towards a redevelopment of the pavilion to provide disabled access and upgraded changing facilities to ECB and Premier League standards. We still have a funding gap of approximately £10,000. £10,000 

Kinoulton Cricket Club (Rushcliffe): 
To replace a non-turf pitch which was laid in March 1998. It is now worn out, dangerous and a safety hazard and cannot be used for coaching and junior matches. £5,580 

Game Changer funding: 

Bawtry Cricket Club (Bassetlaw): 
To develop and enhance the existing memorial sports ground by the installation for four external cricket nets £16,000 

Burton Joyce Cricket Club (Gedling): 
We intend to purchase and lay new artificial surfaces and uplift the surface level to improve the facilities and ensure long life and purchase a two bay concertina net system which will enable the nets to be folded back and secured to protect them from misuse. The Club, at its cost, will also undertake improvement works themselves in the surrounding area to further improve drainage and make the area more user friendly. £25,000 

Calverton Cricket Club (Gedling): 
The aim of the project is to redevelop part of the pavilion in order to create a dedicated ladies changing/showering area. We are keen to increase the participation of girls/women in cricket and this project should go a long way to realising that goal. With upgraded facilities, we also aim to attract & increase the playing membership in general, especially junior members. 
£25,000 

Papplewick and Linby Cricket Club (Gedling): 
Our project would upgrade equipment and facilities to the level required to provide high-level cricket to all ages. By upgrading our facilities we will aim to retain more of our juniors, particularly those moving into the 18-25 age bracket, and increase recruitment and the cricket played at junior level, from ages 7 to 17. We will look to maintain and improve the quality played throughout the club, whilst engaging the local community and encouraging participation for all. £14,500 

Welbeck Colliery Cricket Club (Mansfield): 
WCCC Plan to use the Game Changer award to increase the usage and quality of the outdoor cricket facilities at our home ground. Specifically the award will allow the club to develop the playing squares and the current practise square, in addition to developing a brand new practise square at the ground to allow more practise sessions/competition to take place. £9,600 

Edwinstowe Cricket Club (Newark and Sherwood): 
The award will fund an extension to the cricket pavilion for the storage of equipment and ground maintenance machinery. The storage for the club to continue to function. 
£12,750 

Keyworth Cricket Club (Rushcliffe): 
2013 will see us relocate to Platt Lane Playing Fields in Keyworth – a ground we will share with Keyworth United Football Club. Our vision for our new home is to develop the following new facilities that are essential to embed and build upon the progress we’ve made over the last few years, and to set the club up for the next 25 years. Three of the items below are also a league requirement for clubs playing in Division B and above. The Game Changer award will not only help sustain and grow Keyworth Cricket Club and provide the best opportunity for player and coach development, it will also ensure that Platt Lane becomes a year-round community sports facility in conjunction with the football club – maximising opportunity for sporting participation within the village. £23,500 

Radcliffe on Trent Cricket Club (Rushcliffe): 
To improve and upgrade our existing facilities to a standard comparable to the very best in Nottinghamshire and other centres of excellence nationally. In order to provide good practice and match facilities for the large junior section the current artificial surfaces need repairing and revamping. Good artificial match surfaces will enable games to take place throughout the week by all junior age groups. £10,000 

Thrumpton Cricket Club (Rushcliffe): 
The clubs primary reason for requesting funding is to finance a long term solution to our problem of the waterlogging of the cricket outfield. The award will enable the club to employ a sports turf specialist to design and install a cost effective drainage system with the minimum disturbance to the existing surface. We also plan to use the award to replace 265 metres of boundary fencing. £11,000 

West Bridgfordians Cricket Club (Rushcliffe): 
The Game Changer Award would contribute towards the capital costs and associated professional fees incurred in the development of our clubhouse to create a new changing facility to enable the club to set-up a ladies team and carry out essential refurbishment works. 
£41,600