Newport Aces are the latest Local Delivery Partner to join Levelling the Playing Field in Gwent. Their founder, Asa Waite, has a great phrase to sum up the issues his community basketball club tries to tackle with children in the area.

He calls it the ‘Newport state of mind’ (perhaps a nod to the Goldie Lookin’ Chain song of the same name).

‘Newport state of mind’ can be interpreted as having very limited ambition and self-worth, a closed and insular mindset, never leaving your local area and typically getting caught up in negative behaviour and crime. Young residents of the culturally diverse but economically deprived area of Pillgwenlly (commonly known as Pill) can be prone to this psyche.

“I grew up in this area and I recognise this mindset completely,” says Asa (pictured above). “Without the discipline and dedication that basketball gave me as a kid, I definitely could have gone down a different path.

“Essentially it comes from a combination of circumstances that people find themselves living in – as well as socio-economic factors there is racism and oppression – that lead them to have very low self-value. I think it’s important we try to snap that mentality.

“That process starts with simply offering them something as simple as an organised basketball game as an alternative to just hanging around. For them, it’s an opportunity; something they are rarely offered elsewhere in their lives.”

The club’s ethos is, therefore, aligned perfectly with Levelling the Playing Field’s common goals:

• Increase the number of ethnically diverse children taking part in sport and physical activity

• Prevent and divert ethnically diverse children from becoming involved in the Criminal justice System

Newport Aces offer a vital diversion for the young people of Pill and surrounding areas. Once they engage, they have the motivation of working their way up to represent the club in local leagues. Before the pandemic hit, there were eight competitive teams ranging between Under-10s and adults, for males and females.

Asa is an ex-Wales international and currently plays for the Bristol Flyers in the national BBL. He is a sports coordinator for Newport Live (LtPF’s Local Strategic Partners in Gwent) and a Doorstep Sport Advisor for StreetGames. His Head Coach role with Newport Aces is voluntary.

“You simply couldn’t access basketball in Newport until we set the club up in 2015,” says Asa. “I loved basketball from a young age and travelled out of Newport every weekend to play. It’s a place where you could easily get distracted by a few things, but because of the structure the game gave me, I took the correct path. I ended up being one of the best players and I came from a place with no basketball. That’s why I really wanted to bring opportunities to Newport.”

Asa was initially helped in setting up the club by a care leaver who he’d engaged during a social services football session for over-16s. The boy progressed to volunteering as a coach and then helped Asa apply for £250 to hold the club’s first ever community session. It grew from there, through promotion in primary and secondary schools, taster days and local basketball festivals.