[Albion] Season Ticket Holders – A Scheme to Donate Your Empty Seat to Inspire Young Footballers from Low-Income Families

[hughfromalice]

How can we - as season ticket holders - join together to inspire young footballers from low-income families and help our club build on its excellent recruitment of youth talent?

Outline
Our club sets up a data base of young people (say 10 to 15 years old) drawn from low-income families who live in Sussex and play regular football for a recognized junior team.

When we can’t attend a home game many of us don’t on-sell our empty seat. Regardless of whether we on-sell or not, the proposed scheme will give us the option of donating our empty seat to the club. The club uses the data base to allocate the seat to a young person for free.

The Benefits

• It will be highly motivating for the young footballers selected to enjoy coming to the Amex and soak up the excitement of our premier league home games when they would otherwise have little or no chance of doing so.
• The scheme can be dovetailed into existing recruitment schemes run by the club.
• This is a powerful way to show that our club is well run and stands at the forefront of social responsibility.

Low Cost but Long Term
A scheme like this is low cost to set up and maintain, yet it has high levels of ongoing benefits for the young players involved and for our club.


Your Thumbs Up & Suggestions
Give this a thumbs up if you think it’s a good idea.

A short post/comment would be nice too!

Also, I’d love to hear practical suggestions from as many of you as possible. In a couple of weeks, I’ll pull the key ideas together in a draft. I’ll post the draft here so that you can make final comments. These comments can be incorporated into the finished proposal. The proposal will be sent to the club with a request for concrete action.


Hugh

My background: Born in Hove, lived in Storrington. Watched matches at the Goldstone ground when I was young. Emigrated to Australia. Spent most of my life in Alice Springs, Central Australia. Unexpected, but recently came back to live in the UK, for romantic reasons. Love my season ticket in East Lower E1D.

 

[Beach Hut]

Like the idea however how to define low income families ?

I am not sure a 10 year old should be going to game on their own or would even want to, could be quite intimidating

Finally if a draft approved perhaps one for FAB to sponsor

 

[Paulie Gualtieri]

I emailed a similar suggestion to Barbs regarding the late KO Brentford game on Boxing Day, as to a facility to donate season tickets to charities etc

Said he’d run it past Jenny Glover, didn’t hear anything further, suspect it’s down to logistics and names on tickets (normally is!)

Shame really

 

[Acker79]

I think the idea is coming from a good place, and to be honest, I don't know that it should rely on STH donating their seat - it could be done using any unsold seat.

But immediate concerns are:

As already mentioned, maybe the upper end of the age range would be ok to go to a game alone, but a lot seats could end up being single. My and my friend's attendances are not linked. They don't always make it, but I still go, and vice versa. How appropriate is that for a 10 year old? And we're in the west upper, would a lot of parents want their kids sitting alone amongst the more industrial language of the north stand?
How does watching the game from the stands show how the club is run?
Why is this limited to young players, and not just something on offer to people from low-income families?
Are there restriction on "bribes" that might come into play?
Are kids from low income families regularly turning down academy places to the point they need this incentive?

I don't really see how free tickets to a game links to the identifying of young talent or of convincing them to join us more than a tour of the training facilities, highlighting how the kids are supported.

But I do like the idea of us, as a community club, giving tickets away to underpriviledged/low income youngsters (and appropriate supervision as necessary).

 

[trueblue]

Some obvious logistical problems, such as who accompanies the kids, but it shouldn't be beyond the club to sort those out. It's a nice idea.

 

[Guinness Boy]

It’s a nice idea but if I’m responsible for the behaviour of the people in my seat then it’s a non starter for me.

Far better for the club to organise some group tickets for clubs from deprived areas via AITC

 

[ElectricNaz]

If it doesn't sell, don't care, as long I'm not personally responsible for whoever it goes to. I.e. If its on the exchange and doesn't sell by 3 hours before the game, the club can do whatever they want with it. I'm still getting nothing back for it so all good.

Not sure about the low income thing though, for me it's all relative. With income comes expenses.

Sometimes when you go to comedy shows screened on TV you get a free ticket, you queue and still can't get in because they over provide knowing people won't show up.

Mabye have a queue similar at the Amex for unsold tickets off the exchange. No guarantee you'll get in but have a go anyway.

 

[Neville's Breakfast]

Yeah, it’s a safeguarding concern. Complete non starter. Anybody who wants to make a nice gesture such as this should pay for a family to join as members then pay for match tickets for them. I don’t think it’s for the club to get involved.

 

[amexer]

Maybe anything is better than nothing but sorting who should have ticket not easy. Nothing will replace times when several times a season was able to pass a seat on to someone who could never afford to go.

 

[dazzer6666]

Nice idea but absolutely Zero chance this can happen from a safeguarding perspective. Could offer the same scheme to blue light staff perhaps ?

 

[Sirnormangall]

How can we - as season ticket holders - join together to inspire young footballers from low-income families and help our club build on its excellent recruitment of youth talent?

Outline
Our club sets up a data base of young people (say 10 to 15 years old) drawn from low-income families who live in Sussex and play regular football for a recognized junior team.

When we can’t attend a home game many of us don’t on-sell our empty seat. Regardless of whether we on-sell or not, the proposed scheme will give us the option of donating our empty seat to the club. The club uses the data base to allocate the seat to a young person for free.

The Benefits

• It will be highly motivating for the young footballers selected to enjoy coming to the Amex and soak up the excitement of our premier league home games when they would otherwise have little or no chance of doing so.
• The scheme can be dovetailed into existing recruitment schemes run by the club.
• This is a powerful way to show that our club is well run and stands at the forefront of social responsibility.

Low Cost but Long Term
A scheme like this is low cost to set up and maintain, yet it has high levels of ongoing benefits for the young players involved and for our club.


Your Thumbs Up & Suggestions
Give this a thumbs up if you think it’s a good idea.

A short post/comment would be nice too!

Also, I’d love to hear practical suggestions from as many of you as possible. In a couple of weeks, I’ll pull the key ideas together in a draft. I’ll post the draft here so that you can make final comments. These comments can be incorporated into the finished proposal. The proposal will be sent to the club with a request for concrete action.


Hugh

My background: Born in Hove, lived in Storrington. Watched matches at the Goldstone ground when I was young. Emigrated to Australia. Spent most of my life in Alice Springs, Central Australia. Unexpected, but recently came back to live in the UK, for romantic reasons. Love my season ticket in East Lower E1D.

Great idea in principle, just need to think through some of the practical issues eg 2 adjacent tickets needed for parent. / guardian?

 

[Justice]

Ridiculous idea what teen or younger wants to set next to some tutting middle class Brighton fan by themselves? They would probably learn more about politics and gardening than anything football related

 

[Blue3]

I love this as an idea

 

[Herr Tubthumper]

Like the idea however how to define low income families ?

Huge television, latest iPhone, latest Nike trainers and fags?

 

[Beach Hut]

Huge television, latest iPhone, latest Nike trainers and fags?

That's just silly, you are making generalisations

 

[Herr Tubthumper]

That's just silly, you are making generalisations

I’ve read it on here.

 

[Seaview Seagull]

That's just silly, you are making generalisations

 

[Seaview Seagull]

I think it should be for low income families in general. The best way to make it work would be to link to a local charity that supports low income families. Otherwise someone is left having to ask intrusive questions of vulnerable people.

 

[hughfromalice]

Like the idea however how to define low income families ?

I am not sure a 10 year old should be going to game on their own or would even want to, could be quite intimidating

Finally if a draft approved perhaps one for FAB to sponsor

Thanks Wozza. Good points.

 

[hughfromalice]

I emailed a similar suggestion to Barbs regarding the late KO Brentford game on Boxing Day, as to a facility to donate season tickets to charities etc

Said he’d run it past Jenny Glover, didn’t hear anything further, suspect it’s down to logistics and names on tickets (normally is!)

Shame really

Thanks Paulie. I sent the club an email last year but didn't even get an acknowledgement of receipt. I posted here to get some idea of the level of interest in this. It doesn't seem very high.