Help Raise Funds for our Sevenoaks SUNS WBBL Team

Our story:

We are a successful national level, premier basketball club with a track record of success both on and off the court. Since the clubs start in 2005, our girls' program has won 25 national championships across all age groups. Over 40 Suns have played for England and GB teams while 20 Suns have gone to America to continue their education while playing basketball.

At the top of our player pathway is our WBBL (Women’s British Basketball League) team.  The WBBL Suns are the current triple national champion and inspires our young players from 8-18 to be better athletes and better people. Financing our WBBL franchise is always a challenge and COVID-19 has made it even more so.  

We are now asking for your support to continue our club’s success on and off the court. Whether it's a small straight donation, a purchase of a Benecos lip balm, a supporter T-shirt or sponsoring the team's kit by placing your company's logo, you will be helping us towards our goal and any size donations are very appreciated!!!

We are also delighted to announce that Benecos, a leading European natural beauty product brand, will be sending out natural beauty products to EVERY SUPPORTER who claims a reward through our crowdfunding page. Whether it's their ever-popular orange vegan lip balm or jam-packed kit bags with up tp £115 of products for all the family. (The bigger the reward, the bigger the Benecos kit bag ;)
 

A little bit more 

Although we produce elite players, we are not an elite club. Our goal is to help young people develop into mature, confident and self-reliant individuals. Individuals who can work constructively as part of a team, understand the focus and effort required to achieve excellence in any endeavour and can perform well in a challenging environment.

That is why our WBBL program is such a vital part of our program. Our player pathway provides young girls the opportunity to develop into elite players. Junior teams have the unique opportunity to practice with WBBL players or can attend WBBL games in order to see their role models in action. 

Our vision includes the creation of an environment in which we can inspire young people and empower them to try basketball, experience the joy of team sport and individual improvement and begin to grow in confidence

Accomplishments of Suns Girls’ and Women’s Teams 

Our WBBL team has won:

• 3 back-to-back WBBL Playoff Championships in 2017, 2018 & 2019 
• WBBL Trophy in 2017
• WBBL League Championship in 2018 & 2019
• An undefeated League campaign in 2018-19 going 22-0
• A record 34 game League winning streak over the 2018-19 and 2019-20 seasons
• A 53-2 record in the League over the past three seasons 
• WBBL Cup in 2020
  
  

Further, the Suns have an incredible track record of achievements in their junior girls’ program including: 

• 25 national championships across all age groups (U14, U16 and U18)
• 39 Suns players have represented England or Great Britain at the U15, U16, U18 and/or Senior Women’s Level
• 14 Suns players have represented Great Britain at the U20 and Senior Women’s Level
• 20 Suns players went on to play basketball at universities across the USA
  
  

Why are we raising funds?

The Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic lockdown has resulted in the league cancelling the 2019/20 WBBL season, just before the team had the chance to defend their League and Play-Off Titles. 

Up to now, Suns have relied on one main sponsor to pay player salaries, court hire, travel, and game costs. In the current environment, our sponsor is unable to support the Suns at the same level.  We need help to continue to do our part in pushing women’s basketball forward in the UK and inspiring the next generation.

 
How we will use the money raised:

The immediate goal of our crowdfunding campaign is to help us to secure the future of our WBBL team. Going forward, better financial support will enable the club to work toward our future goals which include:

• Increasing our community outreach: more schools, more kids
• Establishing a basketball academy
• Creating a permanent home - The Suns Arena Project
• Enhancing physical and mental health in our community by offering basketball sessions to all ages and abilities
  
  

Looking beyond this crisis, we believe that our local community will need our club more than ever. As this pandemic has shown, both physical and mental health, and fitness, are vital for everyone’s wellbeing. By continuing to provide an environment that allows our young athletes the opportunity to grow we will continue to be an important part of our community.

Thank you for your support!