This recognition reflects more than a decade of sustained development. What began as a small summer option has evolved into a year-round programme, with a growing number of students competing in hardball cricket and progressing through our performance pathways.
“We’ve seen extraordinary growth over the last 10 to 12 years,” says Mrs Nikki Aitchison, Director of Physical Education and Sport. “Cricket has become an integral part of school life, and the number of girls playing hardball cricket illustrates the momentum we’ve built. We also have significantly more international players than ever before, which shows how far the sport has come within our community.”
What Makes Us Stand Out
Our Cricket Programme continues to shine because of its exceptional balance of performance and participation.
“It’s the breadth and depth of engagement across the Junior and Senior Schools,” Mrs Aitchison explains. “Even during the busy summer term, when older students are navigating exams, we maintain a strong commitment to providing opportunities to play and compete. At the performance end, we are supporting those who aspire to reach the highest levels—including First XI, national, and international cricket.”
The Benefits for Young People
The cricket programme is strengthened by specialist staff across all stages of the school and strong local partnerships.
“We’re fortunate to have excellent expertise across our schools,” says Mrs Aitchison. “Our partnership with the FP Cricket Club is invaluable, with professional players and coaches such as Lucy Forrester-Smith, Kari Carswell and Hannah Short contributing to the coaching environment.”
Cricket offers particular advantages when it comes to socialising, she notes.
“Students thrive on the social aspect; being outdoors with friends, working as a team, and being inspired by role models who have come through the School before them.”
Looking Ahead
As we move toward our full merger into Erskine Stewart Melville in 2026, there is huge excitement about what the future holds for cricket.
Mrs Aitchison, sees the transition as a major opportunity to strengthen and expand provision.
“The cricket programme at Erskine Stewart Melville is going to be fantastic because it allows us to pool our resources,” she says. “We have amazing expertise across all areas of the school and bringing that together into one unified programme will create something really special.”
She adds:
“Having boys and girls training and learning alongside each other is something we haven’t done before, and we expect the whole programme to benefit from that. We are also investing further by appointing a full-time Cricket Coordinator. Cricket will be a vital part of our School identity going forward, and by combining our strengths, we can help every young person reach their potential.”
