There is a long history of volunteering at Trent Bridge, beginning in the 1830s with the amateur players and the gentlemen who ran the Club without receiving any payment.
During World War One a small army of Red Cross volunteers worked at the hospital that occupied both Pavilions, while even today – when the Club employs over 60 people – the members of the General Committee receive no financial reward for their many hours of work.
During Volunteers’ Week (1 to 7 June) we are also celebrating the contributions of two groups of people who help to make Trent Bridge one of the world’s most popular cricket grounds.
If you have been to an international or T20 match in Nottingham you will probably have seen members of the Matchday Team at the railway station or around the ground.
Their role is to welcome supporters, provide information, support visitors with disabilities, hand out ‘give aways’ and generally help spectators to enjoy their time at Trent Bridge.
Meanwhile away from matchdays these volunteers also support the ‘Forget-Me-Notts’ project for people with dementia and their carers, and adults experiencing isolation and loneliness.
The Matchday Team is co-ordinated by Claire Page, Community & Development Administrator.
“Trent Bridge always scores very highly in surveys amongst cricket spectators, and a big part of our success is due to our great team of volunteers”, said Claire.
A less visible – but just as important – group of volunteers is the Heritage Team, who help the Club to care for and share its unique and fascinating history.
These volunteers research information, compile records of items in the Club’s heritage collection and organise events and displays.
A major World War One project has recently finished, during which the volunteers researched the stories of the former Notts players who died in the war, traced their relatives who attended the unveiling of a memorial to their forefathers, and rediscovered the story of the hospital that occupied both Pavilions between 1914 and 1919.
Meanwhile this year’s projects will celebrate the 50th anniversary of the John Player Sunday League and commemorate 150 years of Club Presidents.
“We have some highly-experienced and professional people in the Heritage Team” said Steve LeMottee, who volunteered at Trent Bridge for four years before joining the Club as the first Heritage Officer.
“Together with students from Nottingham Trent University, they have helped us to make some great progress over the past few years”.
Mike McNamara has been a heritage volunteer since October 2015 and has recently joined the Forget-Me-Notts team.
“While I’ve been volunteering at Trent Bridge I have done a variety of interesting and challenging tasks” said Mike.
“I have really enjoyed using my experience, learning more skills and meeting new people – and it’s great to see how, as a result of our work, the past can inform the future.”
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