Cricket Scotland welcomes removal of special measures in fight to banish racism

Cricket Scotland has welcomed the removal of special measures by sportscotland as the governing body moves to a position of enhanced oversight in its ongoing quest to banish racism from Scottish cricket.

Thursday’s announcement follows the completion of the Cricket Scotland Action Plan, concluded last week with the publishing of the EDI Strategy.

The Action Plan was formulated following the publishing of Changing the Boundaries after Cricket Scotland was placed into special measures in July 2022 when an independent review identified 448 instances of institutional racism within the organisation.

Cricket Scotland chief executive Trudy Lindblade said: “I am pleased we have arrived at this important juncture and on behalf of everyone at Cricket Scotland I would like to thank sportscotland for their continuous support to our organisation throughout what has been an extremely challenging period.

“There is no doubt that an enormous amount of hard work has been undertaken by the team and Board at Cricket Scotland along with a fierce determination to move the governing body forward to this point.

“This has required significant resilience, patience and difficult decision-making. With a solid foundation being built and a clear strategy in front of us, I fully believe cricket in Scotland has a bright future, and we have taken the first important steps to rebuilding our sport and creating a community that is welcoming to all.

“Our work is far from over. In fact, it has only just begun. It is the governing body’s duty to be trusted to lead effectively and take positive action to ensure there is no place for racism in Scottish cricket.

“I am extremely confident that we can do this with the support of everyone involved in Scottish cricket.”

Cricket Scotland chair Wilf Walsh said it was “a significant day for our sport”.

“Our team have been tireless in their efforts over the last two and a half years to create the changes which have brought us to this stage,” he said.

“The Cricket Scotland Board is fully committed to our vision of building a sport that is safe, welcoming, inclusive and free of discrimination of any kind.

“We have been tasked with plotting a course forward by our cricket community and, whilst under no illusions that there is much still to do, we are confident that the groundwork has been laid to move forward with purpose and action.”