On 28 February, Bristol City stunned fans with an out-of-the-blue announcement of some huge increases in season ticket prices. Hardest hit were our fans of the future.
For kids in the Lower Lansdown there was no longer to be any concession prices. And buying the cheapest adult ticket instead represented an increase of over 500%. Parents faced an ultimatum: pay up or move out! The disabled and pensioners were also hit with unexpected, eye-watering increases.
After the Supporters Club & Trust’s intervention, Under-12 and Under-19 price categories were restored in the Lower Lansdown, albeit with an increase of nearly 100%. Thanks to the SC&T and FAN, it was also subsequently agreed that the increase for disabled fans would be phased in across three years. For pensioners, however, there was no help. It was cough up, relocate or stop coming!
In light of all this, we at the SC&T announced that we would be setting up a fund to help fans hardest hit by the increases. Sadly we don’t have the resources to help everyone, so we said we would focus on fans of the future: the kids that the club had done so well over recent years to attract and that it was now at risk of losing through doubling the cost for their parents of bringing them to watch City with established groups of family and friends at Ashton Gate.
So, we said we would set up a “Fans Funding Fans of the Future” scheme and we’re pleased today to announce that this is now up and running.
We had hoped that Bristol Sport’s ticketing department might help us to administer this. Or even just provide us with details of the number of kids affected by the 99% increase, so that we could tailor our scheme accordingly. Unfortunately we were told that Bristol Sport “won’t be able to help facilitate this” and nor would they tell us how many kids were involved.
Despite being denied any guidance on numbers or any logistical assistance, we are pushing ahead, as we are keen that the 99% price rise doesn’t prevent any young fan from coming to The Gate and remaining a part of the group of family and/or friends with whom they have sat to date.
Any adult finding it a real stretch to pay nearly double the previous rate for an under-twelve’s season ticket for 2018/19 in the Dolman or Lower Lansdown may now therefore apply to the SC&T for a gift of £49 to cover the increase.
The “Fans Funding Fans of the Future” scheme is launching with an initial pot of £2,500 from SC&T funds. Fellow fans wishing to help us with this scheme are invited to chip in here to help top this up. Any funds left over when the scheme closes will be put towards our second initiative for fans of the future, via which we aim to buy a group of season tickets and offer them on a match-by-match basis for birthday parties and other children’s outings.
Fans Funding Fans of the Future – Application process
- Renew the £50 child season ticket at the increased price of £99
- Forward your order confirmation e-mail to info@bristolcitysupporters.org
- Attach to the mail a photo of the child’s 2017/18 season card
- Look forward to receiving our £49 gift to you
Our fund is limited, so please let fans who are feeling the pinch most benefit from the modest assistance we can provide. If you can manage without our help, please do.
The scheme will remain open until midnight on 8 April. All applications will be processed confidentially. We will confirm receipt and acceptance of your application (at the absolute discretion of the SC&T board) within 24 hours and discuss with you the most convenient way to send you the money. Your e-mail address must match that on the order confirmation. Maximum 2 x £49 gifts per applicant/family. If/when funds are exhausted, we will announce this without delay.