Fan Engagement Report
Luton Town Football Club 2023/24 Season
Engagement Statements
Premier League
• ‘In addition to overseeing the delivery of the Fan Engagement Standard, the Premier League engages on a range of subjects raised by supporters via regular communication and meetings with Clubs, their Fan Advisory Board representatives and others including the Football Supporters' Association, Level Playing Field and Kick It Out.
• Through these channels matters such as fixture scheduling, refereeing including VAR, fan behaviour, tackling discrimination, promoting inclusion, sustainability and community initiatives are raised with the Premier League to ensure it is aware of fan sentiment and can provide clarity, support and guidance where required.
• The Premier League also has a research programme which surveys fan opinion including the annual Matchday Fan Experience survey.
• The Premier League is currently reviewing all aspects of its engagement and structured dialogue with partners across the game to ensure that it also meets the expectations of the Fan Engagement Standard.’
Club
• Luton Town is a Football Club at the heart of our community. Our mission across our club and Community Trust is to deliver excellence for our supporters, partners and sponsors, whether on the pitch, in the stadium, in our Community Trust, or at our Retail Outlets.
• We are committed to providing an exciting, welcoming, safe match day experience for all supporters, regardless of age, gender, ethnicity, disability or sexual orientation. We are also committed to the long-term sustainability of the club and ensuring that Luton Town continues to provide support and inclusion for our local town for generations to come.
• We pride ourselves on the environment we foster. We’re warm, welcoming, multicultural. We’re a family.
• Our aim here at Luton Town is simple. We’re a club for the supporters, run by supporters. Whichever league we’re in, we will continue to consult with our supporters. Their opinion matters. It’s their club, their town, their team.
• We’re all Luton.
Club Personnel Responsible for Fan Engagement
• CEO & Nominated Board Level Official (NBLO) - Gary Sweet
• Operations Director - James Mooney
• Fan Engagement Officer - Lisa McEvoy
• Disability Access Officer - Michelle McGillicuddy
Core Commitments & Activities
Lisa McEvoy – Fan Engagement Officer “At the start of the Premier League season, I set about engaging with the supporter groups to build reliable communication channels, build good working relationships and put our newly formed Fan Engagement department on the map. We unfortunately didn’t form a Fan Advisory Board in the 23/24 season but are looking to have it up and running in the 24/25 season, now all supporter groups are on board and understand that this will not replace their groups but actually further embed them in the club.”
• Once formed, our Nominated Board Level Official (NBLO) for the Fan Advisory Board (FAB) will be Gary Sweet CEO.
• We supported the Rainbow laces campaign with our Supporters Trust who funded 400 sets of laces to hand out to supporters.
• The Unite For Access Campaign was supported with a matchday activation. Members of our Disabled Supporters Association had their photo taken with the first team players pitch-side.
• Our catering manager attended an LTDSA meeting to discuss ways in which we could make food & beverage more accessible on matchdays. We already provide an in-seat service for our accessible platforms but wanted to know what other improvements could be made.
• Retail held a fan forum meeting to discuss the shops potential new stock for the 24/25 season and get feedback on the items.
• Spent time supporting the Chair of our LGBTQ+ group - Rainbow Hatters. Setting up social channels and making contact with the Gay Gooners to help understand how to develop the group.
• Supporters Trust meeting with our First Team Manager, CEO, Chairman, Operations Director, Commercial Director & Fan Engagement Officer to provide a roundup of the season and thoughts fort eh new season ahead.
• As Fan Engagement Officer, I attend every Supporters Trust monthly meeting and also the DSA meetings.
• The DSA’s AGM was attended by Gary Sweet CEO and Chairman David Wilkinson as well as Lisa McEvoy Fan Engagement Officer and Newly appointed DAO Michelle McGillicuddy. There was a presentation from Gary on the latest plans for our new stadium Power Court.
Fan Engagement Platforms
We are in the process of forming our Fan Advisory Board which will provide a two-way communication point between the club and the supporters.
The Fan Advisory Board does not replace any of our existing supporter groups. It will be a blended group with representatives from all groups to share ideas and may encourage collaboration on some projects/campaigns.
We will continue to offer Fan Focus Groups to discuss individual subjects as we have done previously. We held a focus group to discuss retail options for the new season and to discuss ticket prices. Supporters who responded to a feedback form were then put forward for the group and selected by the club.
Fan Focus Groups are formed by the department lead as and when we need supporter input or feedback but are always available to listen to supporters.
Once the FAB is formed, the below chart shows the escalation/delegation process.
Fan Focus Group
Fan Advisory Board
We are currently in the process of forming our FAB.
It has been a challenge to see how a FAB would work here at Luton as we are in constant, effective communication with our supporters and supporter groups. However, speaking to our supporter groups, we have worked out that we can use the FAB as a collective working group.
• The purpose of Luton Towns Fan Advisory Board is to bring together representatives from our supporter groups and supporters to meet with representatives from the club to open dialogue on fan-facing issues, specific topics or projects relating to the club.
• The proposed structure for our FAB is shown below,
Nominated Board Level Official (NBLO) – Gary Sweet
HR Manager/PLEDIS Lead – Jenn Smith
PR Manager – Andrew Barringer
Fan Engagement Officer/FES Project Lead – Lisa McEvoy
Then…
Member x2 - 2 year seat
Fan Advisory Board cont.
• Our first meeting will be introductions and to discuss what our FAB will look like. We will also discuss putting together an application form for the open seats and make it our first action.
• Each supporter representative will serve their given length of term and then can be re-elected, or an application form will be sent out to replace the representative. No supporter representative can serve more than 2 years. If a representative chooses to stand down, then an application form will be sent out to replace them.
• Representatives are selected by the Club Members of the FAB (Fan Advisory Board) through an application process whereby the supporter groups put forward a minimum of 2 and a maximum of 6 applicants, and supporters will be able to apply using an online form The Club Members will be looking for applicants who are looking to work as part of a team to support changes and make any necessary improvements to benefit the club.
• Applicants must be 16+
• All backgrounds, races and religions are welcome.
• There will be a minimum of 2 meetings per season held in person at Luton Town Football Club. Members of the FAB should send proposed items for the agenda to the Fan Engagement Officer/FES Project Lead at least 10 working days in advance of the meeting. lisa.mcevoy@lutontown.co.uk
• The Club will circulate an agenda to the members at least 5 working days ahead of each FAB meeting.
• Minutes will be taken at each meeting which will be circulated to members of the FAB for approval before finalisation.
• The club will prepare and circulate a summary of the items discussed, to members of the FAB for approval before they are published via the Club channels.
• We hope to hold our first meeting in September.
Heritage Assets
The heritage assets for Luton Town Football Club are,
• Club name
• Club badge
• Club home shirt colours
Without prior consultation with the supporters, these assets cannot be changed.
In the event of proposed amendments, The club will contact our Supporters Trust for consultation and the results will be made public via our website.
Fan Support
For all enquiries relating to Fan Engagement, please contact our Fan Engagement team.
Fan Engagement Officer - Lisa McEvoy lisa.mcevoy@lutontown.co.uk
Fan Engagement Assistant (DAO) – Michelle McGillicuddy michelle.mcgillicuddy@lutontown.co.uk
• Our supporters are the beating heart of our club and we will always listen and assist them. Whether they are a Board member on our Supporters Trust or a new supporter on their first visit, we encourage and support them.
• By attending supporter group meetings, we are able to keep up to date with projects, ideas and suggestions in both directions.
• We have just launched our new website, but all of the information has been carried across. This is where all supporters will find our customer charter which lets them know who to contact, how to purchase tickets, stadium safety, accessibility etc.
• Our media team always keep our social channels up to date and accessible, and share supporter group successes for all to see.
• Youth supporters are the future of our club, and we always look to engage and entertain on matchdays. We have face painters who work their way around the stadium pre-match and volunteers dotted around externally to help with directions and to provide reassurance to any new supporters/visitors.
• Last season saw the launch of our anonymous matchday reporting system for incidents or complaints. These go directly to our control room so that any matters raised can be dealt with on the day.
Accessibility
• Our Disability Access Officer is Michelle McGillicuddy. Michelle works as part of our Fan Engagement Team to provide communication and support with accessibility.
• michelle.mcgillicuddy@lutontown.co.uk or supporterservices@lutontown.co.uk - All emails are responded to within 3 working days. This allows time to investigate any matters raised.
• We also provide a link on our website to our Disabled Supporters Association contact details. Contact the LTDSA - Luton Town Football Club
• Our supporters can find all information relating to fan engagement within our Customer Charter Customer Charter - Luton Town Football Club or under the supporters section of our website Supporters - Luton Town Football Club
Overview of 2023/24 Activities
• Community Clear up. August 23 – Staff and supporters collaborated with the council and local community to help with a litter pick before our first Premier League match.
• Rainbow Laces match. December 23 – The Supporters Trust funded 400 pairs of Rainbow laces to distribute to supporters.
• Unite For Access Activation. March 24 – Members of our Disabled Supporters Association had their photo taken with the first team players pitch-side and this was covered on our website and social media channels.
• Community Iftar. March 24 – We hosted our second successful community Iftar for our local mosque,
• Beds Prostate Cancer activation. April 24 – The supporters Trust also have a nominated charity of the year and we provide space on a matchday for them to promote themselves. In this instance, they were raising awareness of their testing event that was being held in the Eric Morecambe Lounge on 12th May 24. Mick Harford supported the event and said, “Well done, what a great day. You guys are amazing, the hard work ,time and effort you give to the cause is incredible. Well done everyone”
• Beacon of Light presentation. April 24 – The supporters Trust presented this award to AFC Bournemouth and the Cherries Trust for the medical teams, staff and supporters after Tom Lockyer’s Cardiac arrest. Beacon of Light Award 2024 (lutontownsupporterstrust.com)
• Open Training session. April 24 – An opportunity for our supporters to watch our first team train at Kenilworth Road and collect autographs, and have photos with players and staff, including our CEO Gary Sweet, afterwards.
• Meet the Manager evening. April 24 – A sold-out event, hosted in our Eric Morecambe Lounge. It was a Q&A opportunity with our first team manager and our CEO.
• No room for Racism campaign. April 24 – An impactful video was produced by our media team about the abuse faced by several of our players online. https://www.lutontown.co.uk/en/news/were-all-luton-theres-no-room-for-racism
• Noah activation. May 24 – Our nominated charity of the year. We provided a matchday space for them to fundraise and raise awareness. There was a pitch-side photo taken with the first team and their QR code was in our matchday programme. Our Fan Engagement Officer Lisa McEvoy also supported the chosen club charity back in November 23 by taking part in a 12 day trek in Madagascar. This was published on our media channels and with donations from supporters, fan groups, staff and our Board of Directors, raised £6000 for them.
• Mosque Youth Club visit. June 24 – The children who live in the adjoining roads play football in Oak Road on matchdays once the game has kicked off. For the second year, we invited the youth club into the stadium for an hour on the pitch as they never normally get the opportunity to come into the stadium. Gallery | Madinah Mosque visit Kenilworth Road! | News | Luton Town FC
Case Study 1
After the amazing win at Wembley, to secure our place in the Premier League, work immediately started at Kenilworth Road building a tv gantry to suit Premier League requirements. Our CEO made it very clear from the start ,that during this build it was key that accessibility was improved, particularly in the Away end. These improvements would allow Away disabled supporters to finally join their fellow supporters in the Away end. They had previously had to sit in front of the home supporters. A new vomitory was designed, providing ramped access from Oak Road, into the Oak Away end. The accessible toilet and low-level counter were also major improvements for the Away supporters. A new platform was also created in the home end to allow additional accessible bays.
After initial positive feedback, came the evening match against Arsenal in December 23, where a late goal sealed the win for the Gunners. Unfortunately, as the goal went in, their supporters surged into the accessible area and several wheelchair users were knocked and injured. An investigation followed and Level Playing field supported a meeting with ourselves, Arsenal and Arsenal Disabled Supporters Association to discuss what we could do to ensure there was never a repeat of this. One of the supporters who was injured that night, bravely recounted the events and we went through our plans and what we had already implemented as a result. The meeting was a real success and set the standard for how we now approach all concerns and complaints. The introduction of safe standing has also helped us to improve the logistics in that area and been cascaded through our safety teams to follow the same processes around the whole of Kenilworth Road.
Our Fan Engagement Team have made accessibility a key focus over the 23/24 season, working with the LTDSA and Level Playing Field. Fan Engagement Officer Lisa McEvoy said, “The age of our stadium does create limitations and we do have Power Court on the horizon, but right now we are making the best of the old girl, and I won’t use Power court as an excuse to avoid improvements. Where we can improve match day experience, we will. Your Fan Engagement Team are always here to listen.”
It was a pleasure to support the Unite for access campaign again this season to spread awareness and inclusivity. We work closely with the LTDSA and are proud of the relationship we have.
Improvements have also been made to our accessible toilets around the stadium and further training has been provided so that our matchday staff and stewards are aware that not all disabilities are visible. It’s so important that Equality, Diversity and inclusion are covered in all areas. We want everyone to have an enjoyable matchday experience.
We have recently received the report from our access audit on the stadium and will look to work through the action points. As I’m sure you can imagine, there are limitations to being able to achieve best practice in all areas but there will be improvements made and we will look to form a focus group to support with this.
If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to contact the Fan Engagement department at supporterservices@lutontown.co.uk
We can’t improve without you. We’re all Luton.
Case Study 2
Our commitment to equality, diversity and inclusion has never wavered at this club. We’ve worked hard on education around inclusivity and anti-discrimination this season. We can’t hide from the fine we received at our first Premier League Away fixture in Brighton which set us on a path of education for supporters. In the Premier League, you are under a global spotlight and we needed to be sure that we were conducting ourselves appropriately.
Our Community Trust work withing the schools in Luton to deliver education and a highlight for the pupils was a visit from Marvelous Nakamba and Chiedozie Ogbene to talk to them about the kick it out campaign.
We implemented a new matchday reporting system this season, so that supporters can report and discriminatory/abusive language or behaviour anonymously on the actual matchday. This message is received directly by our control room who can then investigate it – send stewards, use cctv etc – in real time. This allows a better chance to prevent escalation and identify the offenders. There are QR codes dotted around the stadium to link you to this service.
Messaging pre-match and at half-time have been introduced this season too. They are a reminder that discriminatory language and abuse will not be tolerated here at Kenilworth Road and that it is a criminal offence. This messaging will continue in the 24/25 season.
For a second year, we hosted a community Iftar in the Eric Morecambe Lounge, which brought together the multi faith leaders in Luton, councillors, club representatives and the local community. There was an inspiring presentation from one of our academy players Nassim El Gourja on what it’s like to train and play while fasting for Ramadan and the support he receives. It’s essential to hold these community events so we remain as one. It was essential to show that topflight football didn’t mean we would leave our local community behind.
After several of our players suffered racial abuse, we wanted to do more than issue an online statement, so our media team worked with META to better protect our player accounts and block any discriminatory messages. They then went on to produce one of our most powerful videos this season, in the hope that more people would take notice and understand that any form of discriminatory behaviour is not welcome at this club.
Gary Sweet said, “ When we get to that point where our players are being attacked, that’s an attack on all of us. Every member of staff and every supporter”
“We’re all Luton here, it’s players, family, staff, everybody. The extended family are our supporters. We deserve it to ourselves to defend those players, to defend each other, to make sure that we give ourselves the best chance of success in our game.”
“At Luton Town, we have no prejudice. There’s no room for Racism.”
On our new website, we use the phrase We’re all Luton. As part of our action plan for the new season we will be launching our We’re all Luton campaign. Updates will be on our website.