Yorkshire County Cricket Club appoint Mahboob Hussain as new equality, diversity and inclusion manager

Mahboob Hussain has been appointed Yorkshire County Cricket Club’s new equality, diversity and inclusion manager.

Hussain will join Yorkshire from St Luke’s Hospital in Bradford where he has worked for the past decade as a therapeutic and psychological practitioner and social worker.

Hussain, who has 20 years of experience working with hard-to-reach communities, will take up the post at Emerald Headingley in late April.

“Diversity, inclusion and equality have always been a passion through work, and working in cricket has always been a dream,” Bradford-born Hussain said. “I am particularly passionate about local cricket. I have an understanding the dynamics of it and the challenges, as well as the opportunities that we have.

“I have made lots of friendships, lots of connections and for me personally, lots of barriers have been broken down through the love of sport. That is what drives me. I am hoping that these kinds of experiences can be shared and understood by others. That is what attracted me to this role.

“I was born into a cricketing family. I have played all of my years in the Bradford League as a junior and then for various clubs as an adult.”

A key element of the role will be to align Yorkshire Cricket’s diversity, equality and inclusion work to key ECB strategies, including the South Asian action plan and the transformation of women’s and girls’ cricket.

Hussain added: “We have to be realistic, look at what is achievable in the right timescales and get the tone right. That being said, there must be trust and we must work at a good pace to ensure that we deliver and reach our goals.

“We need to ensure that we have the resources in place to allow those within key groups to grow as individuals. When looking at diversity we also need to focus on initiatives with those who have disabilities and how to be more inclusive.

“There are large African-Caribbean communities in the area who have historically had great passion for cricket. There is some great work being done nationally, so it is important to learn from others, network and ensure that we are equally innovative and productive.”

Last week, the ECB appointed Cindy Butts as chair of the Independent Commission for Equity in Cricket, which will examine issues relating to race and equity in the game.

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