Go North East sponsor Durham Cricket's Visually Impaired Team

Go North East is delighted to announce they will continue as the front-of-shirt sponsor for the Durham Visually Impaired (VI) Cricket Team for a third consecutive year.

Go North East provide complimentary travel passes to VI players, helping remove one of the major barriers faced by people with visual impairments. The bus operator also funds transport to away games across the country, ensuring players can travel safely and confidently.

Ben Maxfield, Business Director at Go North East, said: “We’re excited to continue supporting Durham Cricket's VI Team this season.

“At Go North East, we’re committed to making our services accessible to everyone - our buses are equipped with next-stop audio announcements to assist visually impaired passengers. Backing Durham’s VI team reflects our continued commitment to inclusivity in our community.”

Durham’s VI team is run and supported by Durham Cricket Foundation as part of its disability cricket programme.

The team is the county’s only visually impaired cricket team, made up of players with partial or total sight loss who compete at a high level. Players use adapted equipment and modified rules to ensure the game is inclusive and competitive.

Fixtures take place across the country, with players from across the region travelling to represent Durham - making the backing of Go North East, the region’s largest bus operator, especially meaningful.

Graeme Weeks, CEO of Durham Cricket Foundation, said: “We are incredibly grateful to Go North East for their continued support of our Visually Impaired team. They are a key partner of the Foundation and their backing allows us to provide meaningful opportunities for visually impaired players - opportunities that are so important to us as an organisation.

“For people with visual impairments, transport can be a real challenge. Thanks to this partnership, we can offer players complementary bus passes and arrange team transport to away games, ensuring they can compete and represent Durham without barriers. This long-standing relationship gives us security and consistency for the team and helps us make sure cricket is accessible to everyone in our community.”

For more information about the Visually Impaired Cricket visit: Visually Impaired Cricket – Durham Cricket.

Notes to editors

About Durham Cricket's Visually Impaired Team

The team is run and supported by Durham Cricket Foundation as part of its disability cricket programme, which works to provide opportunities for people with disabilities to play and enjoy cricket. Through coaching, competitions and community initiatives, the Foundation is committed to breaking down barriers and ensuring cricket is a sport for everyone across the county.

About Go North East

Go North East runs a network of bus routes across the North East region including Newcastle, Sunderland, Durham, and surrounding areas.

The Go-Ahead Group is one of the UK’s leading providers of public transport, enabling more than a billion passenger journeys each year on its bus and rail services. Go-Ahead places great importance on partnership, adopting a collaborative approach with governments, local communities and strategic partners; developing and operating services that create long-term value for all.