Left to right: Will Gaffney, Nicky (vice chair), Devon Malcom OBE, Omar Khan (chair), Leigh Burns (Trustee), James Cameron (Chair PCA), Tammy Beumont MBE, Simon Jones MBE

Cricket has a kit problem. Every season, vast quantities of perfectly usable equipment is discarded  — while thousands of young people across the UK and beyond can’t afford to play.

Today, Bat for a Chance (BFAC) and the Professional Cricketers’ Association (PCA) are doing something about it.

BFAC has been named the PCA’s Official Kit Recycling Partner — a first for the players’ union, and a significant moment for sustainability in professional cricket. The partnership will see used equipment collected directly from counties and professional teams and redistributed to the communities that need it most, giving kit a second life and giving more young people a first chance to play.

The announcement was made at a private dinner hosted by JM Finn, where guests heard first-hand about BFAC’s work using cricket as a force for social change across the UK and internationally.

Omar Khan, Chair of Bat for a Chance, said:
“This is a really proud moment for everyone at Bat for a Chance. The PCA represents the very best of professional cricket — and having them stand behind this sends a powerful message to the whole game. Every season, equipment that could change a young person’s life is thrown away, while children in communities that have never had a real connection with cricket can’t access even the basics. This partnership changes that. It’s the kind of systemic, sport-wide solution we’ve always believed was possible — and today it becomes real.”

James Cameron, Chair of the Professional Cricketers’ Association, said:
“Our players care deeply about the future of the game — and that means thinking seriously about what professional cricket gives back. Bat for a Chance is doing extraordinary work, and this partnership gives counties and players a direct, practical way to be part of it. Knowing that kit which might otherwise be discarded is going to a young person who needs it — that’s something every cricketer can get behind. We’re proud to make this commitment.”

The partnership runs until December 2027. Through its network of counties, player representatives and Front Foot Ambassadors — current and former professionals committed to environmental best practice — the PCA will drive awareness of the scheme across professional cricket, encouraging donations and championing the initiative to teammates and fans alike.

On the ground, BFAC will work with the PCA to establish collection points and coordinate logistics, with redistributed kit channelled through BFAC’s domestic and international programmes. Impact data and stories will be shared back with the PCA — giving players and counties real visibility of where their kit ends up, and whose life it changes.

The two organisations have also committed to identifying joint fundraising opportunities, with sustainability and the kit recycling initiative at their heart.

The announcement builds on a big year for BFAC. The charity’s Changing the Batting Order campaign is currently placing 1,000 free starter kits into 500 primary schools and 500 community groups across England, Wales and Scotland, targeting over 20,000 children in the country’s most underserved communities. Together, the two initiatives represent the most ambitious push yet to make cricket genuinely accessible — and genuinely sustainable.