The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) united with a number of sporting, political and educational institutions on Sunday May 10 in signing the International Working Group (IWG) on Women & Sport’s Brighton Plus Helsinki Declaration.
ECB Chief Executive Richard Gould joined Durham Cricket, Durham Cricket Foundation, Eagles Community Foundation, Foundation of Light, Newcastle University, Newcastle Red Bulls, Newcastle United Foundation, North East Combined Authority and Northumbria University Newcastle to put pen to paper at the interval of yesterday’s Metro Bank ODI against New Zealand at Banks Homes Riverside Durham.
The collective commitment bridges the gap between local grassroots impact, regional leadership, and global strategic change. The signatories are pledging to turn intent into action, dismantling the barriers that prevent women and girls from participating, leading, and thriving in and through physical activity.
The Brighton Plus Helsinki Declaration serves as a global roadmap for the development of a more equitable system for sport and physical activity. As new signatories, these organisations join a network of over 600 global entities dedicated to sharing knowledge, driving evidence-based change, and accelerating the pace of progress.
ECB Chief Executive Richard Gould said: "The ECB is committed to making cricket a gender-balanced sport. The game is growing rapidly at professional and grassroots levels, and with England and Wales hosting the Women's T20 World Cup this year we want to use this as an opportunity to inspire even more women and girls to pick up a bat and ball and to establish women's cricket in the sporting mainstream.”
Annamarie Phelps, Co-Chair of the International Working Group on Women and Sport (IWG), said: "The North East is a region defined by its passion for sport, and today it becomes a region defined by its commitment to equity. To see this cross-sector collective join our global movement is a testament to the power of collaboration and cooperation to ensure that every woman and girl has an environment she can thrive in."