I am writing these notes after our last three games which were all wins. How good it is to go home happy for a change. It has been a long time coming and long may it last. The players have a new found confidence and look as if they are enjoying their matches at last. I hope that this is a corner turned and we can all start to look forward to success at our club once again.
These are the last notes that I shall write in my position as Gold Membership Director and member of the Trust Board as I am standing down at the end of June.
I was co-opted onto the newly formed Trust Board way back in 2001. I have been the gold membership administrator since then and Gold Membership Director for the past 8 years. I am very proud of the way the Gold Membership has developed and for the fact that this small group of people has raised £110,000 for the club.
I think that the Supporters Trust doesn’t actually promote their achievements as well as they might and I would just like to take this opportunity to illustrate a few things that have happened over the years.
* The first job for the newly formed Supporters’ Trust was to fully support the “Save the Imps” campaign to ensure the future of Lincoln City Football Club. The Trust and fans threw their collective strength into the campaign and Trust founding member Rob Bradley became Chairman of LCFC. The rejuvenated Lincoln City thus became a true supporters’ Club and its largest shareholder was the Lincoln City Supporters’ Trust.
* The Lincoln City Supporters’ Trust has, from its early days, advocated the importance of a close relationship between us, the Football Club and the local community. LCFC is a considerable driver for economic and social development, has an impact on the life of local people and should be a catalyst for community improvement. The Trust is committed to ensuring that Lincoln City Football Club is seen by the local community as a positive; enriching the locality and supportive of making the area a better one in which to live, work and socialise.
* The Trust works closely with the Club to maintain and develop community involvement. We have sourced grants towards the improvement of resources at the stadium and led the introduction of ‘The Club’s the Hub’ - a local regeneration project aimed at benefiting one of the most disadvantaged areas in Lincoln. We helped deliver a wide range of community activities including THE GOAL school holiday club. Raising funding of over £70,000 for this, it provided a high level of care for children from age 8 to 13 during school holidays.
* THE CLUB’S THE HUB: Community Development worker, Gemma McFaul, now works at Sincil Bank - projects include:
- Sincil Youth Forum
- Leap Vulnerable Young Persons Project
- Sincil Dyke Rivercare Project
- Youth and Children’s Projects
- Develop Young Supporters’ Trust Board
- LCFC Sport and Education Trust joint projects
- Over 50’s Primetime Programme
- The planned Sincil Training and Recreational Programme will deliver a range of free short courses to local residents
- Three annual community events are to be organized with LCFC
- plus many more events which were listed in the last programme.
* A new Silver membership of the Trust is now available with Lincoln City shares included and many other great benefits.
* The Supporters’ Trust runs Celebratory Dinners in Lincoln and holds Fans’ Forums in Lincoln and Sleaford. We also organize Race Nites and ‘Evenings With…’ where we invite people from the world of sport, such as World Cup referee Howard Webb, to come and talk to fans about their careers.
* Trust members sponsor the Trust Suite and ran the ‘Trust Us to Cover It’ campaign to raise funds for the purchase of compulsory pitch covers.
* On match days the Trust organises ‘Fan of the Day’ and ‘Junior Fan of the Day’ experiences with ground tours. Also holds auctions of football memorabilia in the Trust Suite on a regular basis to raise more funds.
* Regular news letters are sent out and we have a website to keep fans informed.
* Freely elected voluntary officers have worked hard for their club for the last 11 years and the Lincoln City Supporters’ Trust now has two Supporter Directors on the main Club Board. Most fans at other clubs can only dream of such democracy and empowerment. From its inception the Trust has donated over £200,000 to the club through donations from fund raising, share purchases, membership fees and regeneration funding we obtained for projects at Sincil Bank. Add to this the Gold Membership £110,000 and you can see how the Supporters’ Trust has been such a tremendous support to the Club over the past decade.
I would like to take this opportunity to wish everyone connected with the Club all the best for the future, especially the Club Board and the Trust Board, whose members give so many hours of their time to our Club and I hope that we regain our League status before too long.
Jean Foster
