Photo Credit: Professional Cricketers’ Association
The initiative recognises PCA members exploring their career options.
For the seventh year in succession, the PCA Futures Week will once again be celebrating the personal development and transition stories of PCA members.
Futures Week is aimed at all PCA members, it’s never too early to start planning for that second career with the average retirement age from the professional game remaining at 26. Running from Monday 30 October to Sunday 5 November, the initiative encourages players to explore their future career options.
In the last 10 years, 421 professionally contracted players have left the game, therefore the PCA is proud to assist in supporting players with the Personal Development and Welfare Programme (PDWP).
As part of Futures Week, Futures Conference will take place on Wednesday 1 and Thursday 2 November at the Loughborough Elite Athlete Centre. The two-day conference will see past and present players hear from industry experts and guest speakers, including former England player Geraint Jones and ex-Leicestershire all-rounder George Rhodes, as well as taking part in group exercises with the aim of further broadening their horizons and ideas about what they want to do post playing cricket.
Throughout Futures Week, the PCA will be releasing interviews telling current and relevant personal development stories, covering career paths from finance to coaching.
This forms part of the PCA’s Futures initiatives, alongside the Futures Awards in association with Lodders Solicitors, which reward PCA members who have taken steps towards building their second career. Futures Awards 2023 finalists will once again travel to Cheltenham in late November to present at the law firm’s offices.
The PCA’s Personal Development Managers play a key role in organising Futures Week and the conference and will be on hand during the event to help support players.
Former England international and recent Southern Vipers retiree Anya Shrubsole said: “I did some research with my PDM, Sophie Connor and with a family friend on what I wanted my life to look like. I spoke to a lot of people in different industries and worked through that process and I had to put myself out there, you can’t expect it to just land at your doorstep.
“The support available from the PCA is amazing, I had lots of meetings with Sophie working through bits and pieces in the early days and that led to what I think I want to do, so the support is invaluable and to know that the Association is always there long term is really reassuring.”
Italian Head Coach and recent Northamptonshire retiree Gareth Berg said: “My advice is if you’re going down the coaching route, you need to be ticking all the boxes, trying to dip your toe into every part of coaching and making sure that you’re driven and making contacts along the way which the PCA can be great at helping you with.
“My PDM, Charlie Mulraine is so helpful, he’s always there on the phone with information that I require. The PCA has been great with helping me get my coaching qualifications. Others options that I’ve explored with their help, I’ve put on hold but I know that with one phone call and one text I can get the help that I need.”
Futures Week shines a light on the area of personal development and career transition among PCA members. The two-day Futures Conference forms the centrepiece of the initiative and both are part of the PCA’s Personal Development and Welfare Programme (PDWP). Click here to find out more.
Name of Author: Professional Cricketers Association
The Professional Cricketers’ Association (PCA), founded in 1967 by former England fast bowler Fred Rumsey as the Cricketers’ Association, represents past and present first-class cricketers in England and Wales. In the 1970s, the PCA established a standard employment contract and minimum wage for professional cricketers. It also helped create a pension scheme in 1995 and launched the magazine All Out Cricket and the ACE UK Educational Programme in 2002.
