The Future Leaders Academy 2025/26 Sign Ups Open

Oxfordshire Cricket is delighted to open up sign ups for the new Year 1 Cohort in 2025/2026 of the ‘Future Leaders Academy, a FREE programme designed for young leaders. Following an outstanding response with the inaugural 2024/25 first cohort with 187 young people signing up, we are thrilled to open up sign ups for a new Year 1 cohort that will run alongside the Year 2 Cohort. With clubs and the game requiring volunteers, our aim is to help inspire a new generation of individuals to volunteer. Volunteers are the heartbeat and lifeblood of the recreational game, and many clubs and communities rely on a small number who do a great amount.  The aim of this programme is to inspire individuals aged 13 to 18 (school years 8 to 13) to become a ‘Young Leader’ in volunteering. The course content will provide young individuals with a toolkit of qualifications that they can then use at their club or local community group which will directly benefit them and the clubs/community that they are involved in. The programme will include up to eight modules, with individuals selecting a mixture of mandatory (four) and optional modules (up to four). The modules will take place over the winter to then enable individuals to take what they learnt into their volunteering in time for the season.  This programme includes the following mandatory and optional modules: Mandatory Modules Coaching – Activators Course (Coaching)Umpiring and Scoring – Introduction to Umpiring and ScoringFirst Aid Safeguarding Optional Modules Marketing The Grounds Management Association WorkshopNutrition and Health WorkshopSports Psychology and Mental Health – Introduction The whole programme will be free  This means that individuals will receive up to eight certificated workshops listed above for free. The Young Leader programme encourages individuals to use the qualifications they’ve obtained on the course to complete voluntary hours at their cricket club.  To view a summary video of the Future Leaders Academy Year 1 - CLICK HERETo view a summary document of the Future Leaders Academy - CLICK HERE Accreditation Process and Reward & Recognition We will have three levels that will be based on the number of hours volunteering that an individual has completed. They will be labelled as Bronze, Silver or Gold hours. This will need to be verified by being signed off by a club official who will also be asked to provide a supporting statement/reference on how the individual did and the impact that they had, In addition, the course will dovetail nicely with Young Leaders completing volunteer hours as part of other award schemes such as, the Duke of Edinburgh Award.  To recognise outstanding contributions to the game, all course graduates will be invited to Cricket Collective Grassroot Cricket Awards. At the event, individuals will receive their certificates for completing the course as part of a wider celebration of Oxfordshire volunteers. Young leaders will receive a reward from our partners such as Serious Cricket.  Bronze: 10 Hours of Volunteering (in addition to the completion of the mandatory modules) Silver: 20 Hours of Volunteering (in addition to the completion of the mandatory modules) Gold: 30 Hours of Volunteering (in addition to the completion of the mandatory modules) Benefits to the individual An opportunity for individuals to develop themselves and gain certificates and qualificationsBuild up experiences for CV Link to the Duke of Edinburgh award and other sports leader schemesMeet new people and enjoy the cricket social lifeHave funContribute to the development and sustainability of cricket by volunteeringGain experience of working within a sports environment along with many transferable skillsAccess to volunteer opportunities, including at Oxfordshire Cricket Join the Oxfordshire Cricket family, raise your profile and be on our radar for future development and support Timeline Sign Ups Open: June 2025Sign Ups Close: End of July- 2025Workshops Take Place: October – March –April- 2025/26Volunteer Window: March – August – 2026Reward and Recognition – September 2026 How to Sign Up and Next Steps The deadline to Sign Up or express an interest is Friday 1st August 2025.   For the Year 1 Cohort in 2025/2026 please fill out the expression of interest form You can sign up or express your interest by CLICKING HERE For those that were part of the inaugural year, the Year 2 Cohort Sign Up process will be communicated directly to you.  We will then analyse the sign ups,  and look to provide you with further information in August to book the workshops When will the workshops take place? The face to face workshops will take place in the half terms of October, February and April. It is expected that there will be caps for workshops, with different slots available on a first come first served basis. Individuals have the opportunity to book the workshop date and venue that suits them best. The virtual workshops will be scheduled across a mixture of those half terms and weekday evenings in term time. What is the minimum number of hours of volunteering required? To complete the programme you need to complete all the mandatory modules, and a minimum of 10 hours to get Bronze. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=85cBCGL66i0