A hard-hitting report into cricket in June 2023 reinforced the critical importance of the work being carried out by the five Sports Councils, in response to the Tackling Racism and Racial Inequality in Sport (TRARIIS) review, originally published in 2021.
The Independent Commission for Equity in Cricket stated baldly: “The evidence is unequivocal: racism is a serious issue in cricket.”
Many of cricket’s problems highlighted in the commission’s report carried strong echoes of the TRARIIS review of the wider sporting system two years ago.
Racism, the commission concluded, “continues to shape the experience of, and opportunities for, many in the game”. It reported, among other findings, a lack of trust in the value of reporting discrimination in cricket, and a fear of victimisation among those who spoke out.
The England & Wales Cricket Board has pledged to take action to address the issues raised. By doing so, it will be following a similar path to the five Sports Councils, whose work in response to the TRARIIS review has continued throughout the last six months.
You can find a detailed summary of the activities undertaken by each Sports Council in the full update below.
Read the full TRARIIS review update
Highlights of work carried out
UK Sport:
- More than 75% of UK Sport and Sport England Tier 3 funded partners are now working to create robust Diversity and Inclusion Action Plans.
- As part of its participation in the 10,000 Black Interns programme, and its collaboration with BADU Sports, UK Sport will be hosting a total of five interns for a six-week summer internship.
- We are creating a new targeted leadership development programme for ethnically diverse talent.
- UK Sport has completed an exercise to capture and analyse data on the diversity of funded athletes currently in the World Class Programme.
Sport England:
- Sport England has been working with the Chartered Institute for the Management of Sport and Physical Activity to ensure its 2023 Workforce Insight Report will include more detail on the demographic profile of that workforce. The report should be published in early autumn.
- A Race Code Governance Review has been commissioned, to ensure there is accountability for equality and anti-racist practice.
Sport Northern Ireland:
- Sport NI has begun making awards to governing bodies, as part of its new National Lottery Sports System Investment Programme, to develop the sports system. One of the priority areas is EDI-specific.
- We are also contributing to the current review of the Race Relations (NI) Order 1997, to make sure new legislation is fit for purpose.
sportscotland:
- The council was represented for the first time at the Scottish Ethnic Minority Sport Association’s International Women’s Day event.
- sportscotland has confirmed a partnership agreement with Sporting Equals that has several aims, including the empowerment of ethnically diverse communities.
- We are developing our relationship with Scottish Television’s Expert Voices initiative to increase diversity on its screens.
- sportscotland sponsored the Herald &GenAnalytics Diversity conference in Glasgow in May, attended by 150 delegates, and has committed further funding for the organisations diversity awards later in the year.
Sport Wales:
- Alongside the Foundation for Sport Coaching, Sport Wales, hosted a midnight Ramadan sport programme at the Sport Wales National Centre.
- We have created a new Community Investment Advisor role, with funding from the Welsh Government Anti-Racist Wales Action Plan. This role will work specifically to engage clubs and organisations that support ethnic minority people in sport.
Next steps
The findings, and impact, of the Independent Commission for Equity in Cricket’s report have underscored the importance of the work we are doing – and the need to maintain the momentum we have built up so far.
We can confirm that, as mentioned in our January report, the five Sports Councils will co-host a TRARIIS symposium for our funded partners. This will take place during Black History Month in October.
It represents an opportunity to discuss the work being carried out and share good practice, as well as identifying the obstacles we are facing – and considering ways in which we can amplify our efforts.
We remain collectively committed to driving transformational change by tackling racism and racial inequality in sport across the UK.