Working Party Launch Meeting Presentation – April 2013

THST Working Party Launch Meeting
25th April 2013
The Magpie, 12 New Street, London EC2M 4TP

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Who we are

• Democratic, non-profit organisation for fans, committed to strengthening the voice of supporters in the decision making process at a club, and strengthening the links between the club and the community it serves.Think of Tottenham Hotspur Supporters’ Trust (THST) as a union for Spurs fans; where the Football Supporters’ Federation (FSF) would represent fans at a national level,
  THST would represent fans at club level.
• The THST Board has recently undergone a complete re‐organisation resulting in four new members added to the two existing members of the previous Board.
• The new Board consists of Darren Alexander (Joint Chairman), Darren Howlett (Joint Chairman), Katrina Law (Secretary; Ticketing and Safety), Howard Sherman (Treasurer), Ellie Kershaw (Board Member for Community & Strategy) and
  Tracey Mottram (Board Member for Branding & Communications).
• THST seeks to represent Spurs fans on a vast array of matters from ticket pricing and policing issues to stadium atmosphere and much, much more

Who we are

• Traditionally, THST has only really been involved in Spurs specific issues, but the new Board members are keen to reach out and be involved at national level through relationships with organisations such as Supporters Direct (SD) and the FSF. THST will only ever be as strong as the people behind it.
• This is exactly why it needs as many people as possible to sign up as members and take an active part.
• The more members THST has, the more weight it will carry.
• One of the main plus points of a supporters’ trust, in our eyes, is that  it’s a completely democratic body where it’s possible for anybody to join, stand for board election and eventually, through hard work, become chairman.
• Once THST’s new database is up and running, the Board will regularly survey THST’s members to find out their opinions on the issues facing Spurs fans in order to help shape THST’s strategy.

 Our commitment

• To re-brand and re‐launch the Trust as a society that is relevant and current.
• To achieve a regular, two‐way dialogue with the club, act as a conduit for fans with concerns, lead new community projects as well as lobby and campaign on matters of importance to THST’s membership base.
• Membership will be re‐opened as a priority, with various models currently under discussion.
• A new, functional website (with online membership capture, fed into a workable database) is also a priority.
• The site should also provide content on the campaigns backed by the Trust and links to live petitions/ surveys, community schemes being undertaken, relevant THFC news, as well as providing clear directions to the correct points of contact for
  specific issues, a statement of accounts to comply with financial transparency and a live Twitter feed direct from the Trust’s account.

Our commitment

• Social media will be key to engaging with the younger generation of Spurs fans, as will the support of various podcasts and blogs, together with the exploitation of print media and radio for the more traditional supporter.
• We will explore ways to engage with the official supporters’ groups globally and regionally i.e. Oz Spurs, Spurs Japan, Spain Spurs, Afghan Spurs, LA Spurs, Glasgow Spurs, South Dorset Spurs etc.
• The new Trust should be a social and visible one with events for Trust members held quarterly, as a minimum, in addition to the annual general meeting  (AGM).
• We propose to rewrite the Trust rules, where we see fit, to help expedite processes and make the organisation more responsive and reactive. This will include a duty to respond to any query from a Trust member by the end of the same working day.

 
Your help

• Since being appointed to the THST Board in February, we’ve been working hard behind the scenes to put in place some of the infrastructure that will make the Trust a relevant, contemporary, effective union for Spurs fans and have now reached the stage where we need to call upon the combined skills of our talented
  and diverse fan base to push this forward to the next level.
• Which is exactly where you, the fans, come in…
• We’re looking for people to join one or more of our sub committees, or ‘Working Groups’, across the following areas:
• Website – development, maintenance
• Social media – admin across Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter and other platforms
• Online content – bloggers, writers
• PR – in the traditional sense and also raising our profile in and around N17
  on match days etc
• Community – working with the Tottenham Foundation/ Haringey Council etc on
  community initiatives

Your help

• Campaigning – driving our campaigns on Safe Standing (more information can
  be found at http://www.fsf.org.uk/campaigns/safe‐standing/ ), 20’s Plenty (more information can be found at http://www.fsf.org.uk/campaigns/away‐fans/  ) and all the Spurs specific campaigns we’ll be running in the future. Running
  surveys, also
• Events – organising and hosting quizzes, legends’ nights, football tournaments and the social side of the Trust
• Rule changes – specific Legal expertise to assist in the rewriting of the Trust rules

• Each Working Group should, ideally, consist of around six people, to ensure that no‐one is overworked or overwhelmed. We’re well aware these are voluntary positions and any time that you can spare at all would be really appreciated.
• Each Working Group will have a Board member allocated to it, to ensure everyone has clear direction.
• It should be a lot of fun and a good experience for all of you who are able to commit, even just a few hours, to getting the Trust back on its feet.

 
Who’s leading what

• Comms/ Website/ Social Media/ Online Content: Katrina Law
• Campaigning: Darren Alexander
• Community: Ellie Kershaw
• Corporate: Darren Howlett
• Events: Darren Alexander/ Katrina Law
• Rule Changes: Darren Alexander/ Ellie Kershaw at Board Level with Working Group Lead, Daniel Wynne (former Board Member)

 
Forthcoming meetings/ events

• Campaigning at Wigan (A), Southampton and Sunderland (H) matches on 20’s  Plenty following meeting with FSF last week. More information can be found at :  http://www.fsf.org.uk/campaigns/awayfans/
• Tottenham Foundation meeting on 30th April
• StubHub Q&A coming out with help from Everton
• StubHub meeting with THFC on 4th May
• Supporters Direct meeting tbc in May
• Web development ongoing – looking to reopen membership ASAP (within six
  weeks)
• THST re‐branding to start in May 2013
• Full re‐launch of Trust by start of next season
• Supporters Direct conference in June 2013
• Quiz night in June/July 2013 for events team