England and Wales Cricket Board commissions Leeds Met research

Led by Julian North, a Senior Research Fellow at Leeds Met's Institute for Sport, Physical Activity and Leisure, the study has been commissioned by the England and Wales Cricket Board. It will also look to identify enablers and constraints on South Asian players who have recently become, or are already, established coaches.

There will be a sample of 30 cricketers, which will consist of 18 players and 12 coaches, focusing on Bradford, Leeds and London, where there are high South Asian populations.

Julian commented: "The players will provide a perspective on what it's like to enter into coaching with no previous experience; while the coaches will provide a perspective on what it was like to move through the system. Emphasis will be placed on understanding the participants' voices and experiences, as well as gaining detailed information to provide a guide for future action on how systems and the path to progression can be enhanced.

"It is expected that South Asian players in different playing contexts will have had a range of experiences and attitudes towards coaching. For the study, clubs are identified in three categories: high Asian, a high proportion of South Asian only players; mixed, South Asian, white and other ethnicities; and low Asian.

"This study is important as research into black and minority ethnic groups related to sport participation and coaching highlights the importance of recognising the differences in societal and cultural participation and expression by race, religion, gender and socio-economic group."

Attempts will also be made to sample on the basis of age, gender, pathway (participant, performance development, or high performance) and coaching level.