Jon Darch – Trust Board
Working in partnership with your club - The Bristol City experience
Jan 14, 2015
With so much going on at a local level it is often difficult to fully appreciate the work of other trusts, see the successes they have had and how they've achieved them. This session gave an opportunity to hear from supporters' trusts that have had a particularly busy year for different reasons - be it running campaigns, scrutinising their clubs, engaging and growing their membership or building partnerships and influence - something for everyone.
We know that the relationship that a trust has with the club they support can have a big bearing on the type of work that goes on, so in the first session we heard from trusts that have a good partnership with their club, whereas in the second session we will heard from trusts that either have no working relationship or a begrudging one at best.
We know that the relationship that a trust has with the club they support can have a big bearing on the type of work that goes on, so in the first session we heard from trusts that have a good partnership with their club, whereas in the second session we will heard from trusts that either have no working relationship or a begrudging one at best.
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Transcript
Jon Darch – Trust Board
Trust History
• Formed late 2005• ‘Legends’ event launch night Nov. 2005• 5,000+ fans on InTouch database• c. 400 paid-up members• Shares in the club• Good relationship with club board &
staff
What’s a good relationship?
• Can buy shares and specify use of funds• Standing invitation to attend / call board
meetings• Direct line to chairman and chief exec.
at work and at home• ‘Entrusted’ with the ‘Official’ fans’ forum• Articles and ‘ads’ in matchday
programme
What’s a good relationship?
• Q&A sessions with the chairman … often at pubs prior to an away game:
Steve Lansdown (BCFC Chairman), landlady and Stuart Rogers (Trust Chairman)
What’s a good relationship?
• Able to hand out flyers at the ground• Able to have turnstile operators do same• Able to book exhibition hall at no cost• Stand at club annual open day at no cost• Asked to give input on membership
scheme• Promotion, e.g. of Trust MOTM text voting,
on scoreboard• Articles on club website, e.g.:
What’s a good relationship?
• And, finally, asked to coordinate fan input on the new stadium
How?
• Ground rules set from the start• Adult-adult not parent-child relationship• Professional approach• 100% confidentiality• Earned the right to be listened to• Prepared to be critical / advance warning• ‘Free consultancy’• Built personal relationships
New Stadium Opportunity
• November 2007 –New stadium plansannounced at AGM
• Chairman SteveLansdown calls on Trust to coordinatefans’ views
Online survey 1
Online survey 2
Original ‘Home End’
Revised ‘Home End’
supportcity.net
Say YES!
Online survey 2
Conclusions
• Be professional• Adult-to-adult approach• Keep confidential information confidential• Try to resolve differences before going
public• Stand your ground• Provide ‘free consultancy’• Exploit the relationship to the Trust’s
benefit
Thanks for listening – Questions?
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