Sport and physical activity have played a key role in helping families come through the Coronavirus lockdown, a survey found this week.

The report by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) found that 53% of parents surveyed are spending more time doing physical activities with their children than before the lockdown and 61% plan to continue exercising as a family after lockdown ends.

The results of the survey were published alongside the launch of a new app ‘Dynamos Cricket’ which aims to keep children active during the lockdown period.

Nick Pryde, ECB Director of Participation and Growth said: “Sport is clearly providing families with some much-needed relief during lockdown. As restrictions begin to ease, we hope the app will help kids to have fun whilst picking up some cricket skills.

“We continue to follow government advice and we are doing our utmost to find a way to run the Dynamos Cricket programme as soon as it is safe to do so.”

The free app is aimed at children aged eight and over, and provides them with cricket skills, games and quizzes that they can do at home, without the need for much space or equipment. 

The ECB says many parents have been turning to digital platforms to keep their children active, with 85% of parents saying that their child has increased digital use to aid physical activity.

Former England cricketer Ian Bell, who has been using the app with his children, said: “We’ve tried to be as active as possible with our kids during this period. It has been a challenge but spending quality time with them has been one of the real bright spots. The Dynamos app is a great way for us to keep active as a family and we’ve been having a lot of fun using it.”

The Dynamos app teaches children techniques in batting, bowling and fielding, with skills videos and interactive quizzes providing interactive ways to get the whole family involved.

The app is part of the wider Dynamos Cricket programme that launched earlier in 2020 for children aged eight to 11. The eight-week programme is aimed at those new to the game or those graduating from All Stars Cricket.

Pic credit: Ashton Bingham via Unsplash.