Board Meeting online using Zoom
Wednesday 2nd April 2025, 7:00pm
Minutes
PRESENT
Board: Stuart Rogers (SR), Jon Darch (JD), Miles Hendy (MH), Marie Day (MD), Shahan Miah (SM), and Terry Hamlin (TH), James Nicholls (JN), Jon Watts (JW),
Supporters: Chris Chard (CC), Matt Seaward (MS), Alan Payne (AP), Wendy Rowland (WR),
Bristol City: Jerry Tocknell (SLO)
Avon & Somerset Police: Tom Williams (TW)
Apologies: Mark Newman (MN), D-M Withers (DM), Paul Hunt (PH), Dave Clarke (DC)
1. Welcome
Chairperson SR opened the meeting, thanking those in attendance.
2. Matters Arising from Previous Minutes
· Consent from board members is needed to put their names and position on the website. Five board members have responded positively to SR’s email so far.
· Mike Adams tribute. We agreed to present a special recognition award at the end of season awards. Also, to purchase a digital photo frame to be placed on the wall in the Supporters Bar to include pictures of Mike and other members that have passed.
· SLO will secure the Fans for the Future seats for next season and inform JN about payment.
· SR to invite Head of Communications Sheridan Robins to the April meeting. Invites issued and Sheridan will attend the May meeting as unable to attend in April.
3. Police and Safety Updates
· 24 arrests home and away this season so far, which is down on last season. 41 fans have banning orders, again lower than usual. The 6 arrested for the incident at the Blackburn game is still under investigation. South Wales Police are also investigating an arrest made at the away game in Cardiff. Young fans have been spoken to about plastic bottle throwing at Tommy Conway at the Middlesbrough game and at another player during the Hull game.
· Burnley would not allow away fans to bring flags into Turf Moor, which was not pre-notified to the club, hence flags hastily stored on a coach.
· 22,000 sold for West Brom and heading towards a sell out. The £20 ticket promotion clearly working in line with our view that it is better to have the stadium full through lower ticket pricing.
· Looking at whether part of the Atyeo stand could be open to City fans for the final game against Preston. Also, it looks like QPR have messed up the ticket allocation.
4. Bristol City Women
· The fans forum in the Supporters Bar went well, with more attending than last year, mostly new faces. JN responded to a last-minute plea to set up and run the PA system. Otherwise, no engagement from the football club in organising the event, other than confirming date after various chases by D-M & SM.
· SM tried to follow up with Noah Dougherty from club’s media why the club didn’t record & release audio for the fans forum like they did last year, but no response received as he has since left the club.
· There will be no coach to Portsmouth over the Easter weekend due to costs being too high. We need to analyse the data from this season to see if it is worth running coaches for next season. Action: D-M to provide.
· D-M and SM didn’t in the end run a stand on the concourse for the Sheffield United game.
5. Meetings with Tom Rawcliffe
· Unlikely an away Q&A will happen at Burnley due to the nearby venue needing it clear for other fans by 1pm. QPR could be an option.
· A debate was held about criteria for the end of season awards, especially the Young Player of the Year. Final lists will be agreed with the football club, who will source the glass awards. Our trophies will be engraved afterwards. The event format following the Preston game is still to be agreed. Action JN.
· A bag storage facility was discussed and a site now likely to be found in the new development.
· The Fans Advisory Board’s SC&T representative will be Jon Darch, with James Nicholls available to stand in when Jon is unavailable (as allowed in the rules).
6. AOB
· Low attendance at a recent Robyns Round event before a home game. Sheridan Robins to be asked to include in the match day information published by the football club. Action SR
· The SC&T new rules agreed at the last AGM have been approved by the FCA.
· Ask Section 82 if they can return our flags at the end of the season so that we can clean them and store in our own cupboard. Action SR.
· A suggestion that a future match be dedicated to the 75th anniversary of the SC&T. Agreed to invite Sheridan Robins to the next meeting as part of widening awareness of what supporter group events are happening,
· The next meeting is scheduled for Wednesday 7th May 2025 at 7pm
ACTION POINTS:
1. Mike Adams Special Recognition Award agreed. Action JN
2. Digital photo frame agreed. Action SR
3. Ask S82 to retrieve our flags from the cupboard at the end of the season. Action SR
4. Ask Sheridan Robins to include Robyns Round in the matchday club information and social media. Action SR
5. Three end of season awards for both men and women plus champagne moment. Action JN to contact the club to arrange criteria. SR to contact Romaney Pinnock about presenting the Women’s awards.
6. Get vote up and running on Survey Monkey by Monday. Action JD
7. Breakdown of away coaches for this season to be provided to help assess demand for next season. Action D-M
Minutes reviewed and agreed as correct by: Stu Rogers on 23/04/2025.