Report by R. Giles

Oxfordshire Disability Cricket
Annual Report 2025

Richard Giles – Head of Oxfordshire Disability Cricket

What a year this has been for Oxfordshire Disability Cricket with an
expansion of the programme we are now delivering inclusive cricket to
more young people and adults than ever before. We now have six Hubs
covering all parts of the county and have also delivered SEND sessions
to fifteen Special Schools and Colleges.
This has been made possible thanks to the funding and support from
The Lords Taverners and The England and Wales Cricket Board but also
the fantastic backing given to the programme by the Oxfordshire Cricket
Board. Nick Pinhol has played such an important role in our
development as Head of Participation and his appointment as Managing
Director of Oxfordshire Cricket is so well deserved and we look forward
to working with him in the years to come. An old friend and past
colleague, Shaz Khan, has returned to the county as Head of
Participation and his knowledge and experience will help us all,
especially in the drive to further expand the Disability Programme.
The Lords Taverners Super 1’s programme delivering Table Cricket,
Softball Cricket and Hardball Cricket via our six hubs and The ECB/LT’s
SEND programme delivering the same activities to fifteen special
schools and colleges have helped over 200 young people and adults to
develop as individuals through cricket. We have also run three
workshops throughout the year covering health, work experience and
first aid and because we encourage parents, grandparents, carers and
other family members to join us at our Super 1’s sessions we have
become a close group offering support and guidance to each other. The
phrase ‘a problem shared is a problem halved’ is so true within the
Disability Cricket family.
The expansion of the programme did not happen without a lot of
planning and hard work and the appointment of Charlotte Jennings as
Community Coach has enabled us, via Lords Taverners funding, to
allocate the majority of her time to the programme and the SEND
schools delivery. Her experience, coaching knowledge and empathetic
approach has made her so popular with everyone involved with
Oxfordshire Disability Cricket. She has also worked hard to become a

Coach Developer and featured in The ECB’s recent match day
programmes as the perfect role model for females in cricket. Well done
Charlotte!
My thanks also go to all the people that support our programme. The
family members who help out at our social ‘get togethers’, who transport
our participants to games and give help and advice to us all.
The 380 plus sessions, we deliver throughout the year, would also not
be possible without the trained volunteer coaches that help out on a
weekly basis. Lucy Hunter, Chris Cordell and David Mayers all have their
own stories to tell but are so important to myself and Charlotte and we
are so grateful to them for their help and experience.
Lucy was diagnosed as Autistic, when she was at college, and has
played in The Disability Premier League as well as representing
Middlesex in D40 cricket. Now committed to Oxfordshire she is such an
asset to the programme.
Chris has a son with ADHD, who is in the programme, and gives us the
help and knowledge that enables us to understand and react to various
situations that we encounter.
David is the Disability Cricket Lead at one of our Disability Champion
Cricket Clubs, a retired Orthopaedic Nurse his knowledge and
experience is priceless.
Finally I want to acknowledge and say a massive well done to two of our
participants who have been recognised for their contribution to Disability
Cricket locally and nationally.
Tom Jackson was our Disability Player of The Year in 2024. Tom is one
of our Down Syndrome players and has been with us for five years,
since he was thirteen. His enthusiasm is so infective and he will help set
up any session he attends. He would come to every hub sessions if he
could and we are so grateful to his family, especially his Nanny & Pappy,
for bringing him along and being such supportive grandparents.
Harry Watts is one of our older players and as well as being a very
decent cricketer is also a football referee. Harry is one of life’s doers and
when the opportunity arose to train for and become a Lords Taverners
Young Ambassador he jumped at the opportunity and is well respected
in that role. He has also begun a career with Chiltern Railways and we
know he will be successful and respected going forward.