The families of aspiring young cricketers throughout Queensland have received a timely helping hand as their focus turns towards the coming season.
The latest round of FairPlay funding from the State Government is now available, and that, according to Matthew Richards, Queensland Cricket’s Head of Community Cricket & Infrastructure, will help many in the Queensland cricket community.
“The FairPlay program helps cover things like registration costs for the Woolworths Blast programs and junior club cricket and will certainly help with managing cost-of-living pressures faced by families as they juggle the household budget,’’ he said.
“The State Government has boosted the amount available per child this year, which will no doubt help parents with their planning as we approach Play Cricket month in August when our sign-ons begin,’’ Richards said.
The FairPlay program applies to Queensland children aged from 5 to 17 years from 1 July 2024, with the voucher value increasing per child to $200 to offset the rising cost of junior sport for families.
The number of vouchers for the program has also increased from up to 50,000 to up to 200,000.
The additional 150,000 vouchers will be available for Queensland children and young people aged between 5 and 17 years to participate in sport and active recreation.
Importantly, 50,000 vouchers remain guaranteed to those under the current eligibility criteria of children and young people aged between 5 and 17 who hold, or whose parent, carer or guardian holds a valid Health Care Card or Pensioner Concession Card with the child’s name on it.
Vouchers will need to be redeemed by June 2025, enabling summer and winter sports and activities to be accessed.
Since the program began in 2019, over $30 million has been redeemed by activity providers with more than 210,000 vouchers used by eligible families.
The FairPlay program is part of the Queensland Government’s 10-year Activate! Queensland Strategy to get more Queenslanders moving more often.