Blind Hammer welcomes a West Ham Initiative in relation to their Disabled Supporters.
Regular readers of my posts will have seen how I have already highlighted issues which emerged from the inaugural meeting of the West Ham Disabled Supporters Advisory Board.
I thought I should now introduce this Board more generally. This Board was established in April so that West Ham could receive detailed feedback from its Disabled supporters to help them organise the most inclusive service possible.
Disabled Supporters were invited to apply to join the Board and from over 50 applicants 16 were chosen by Cathy Bayford and Trevor Bright. Cathy and Trevor are Disabled Supporters who are also on the main West Ham Supporters Advisory Board.
They used criteria which included representation from as wide a range of different impairments and expertise as possible. They are committed to regularly reviewing membership in the future to ensure that necessary voices are heard.
The seriousness that the club are attaching to this initiative was indicated by Karen Brady’s attendance and chairing of the Board. A whole range of issues were discussed at the Board Meeting and it is clear that the club has work to do to continue to improve and fine tune the service it provides. It is also seems clear that the club are committed to meeting these improvements.
The club use facilities at the London Stadium which are superior to most other clubs.
This means
• London Stadium is accessible on all levels?
• 14 shuttle buses run from Stratford to and from the Stadium.
• A shuttle bus is also available for away supporters.
• The stadium has the highest number of Wheelchair Accessible spaces in PL – 253
• One of only six Premier League clubs, and the only one in London, whose number of Wheelchair spaces exceed the minimum requirements set out in Accessible Stadia Guide.
• No limit to number of seats available for ambulant disabled supporters
• There are 45 accessible unisex toilet facilities
• Also meets requirements for number of Amenity Easy Access Seats – 613
The club also provide a Headset service for Blind and Visually Impaired Supporters.
Despite this undeniable progress there remains an enormous amount to do but the most positive development is the fact that this Board has been established. At present the Disabled Supporters Advisory Board is scheduled to meet at least twice a season.
Much more extensive and detailed information is available from the full minutes of the meeting which can be downloaded from HERE
Well done to West Ham for showing the commitment to taking the voice of its Disabled Supporters seriously.
COYI
David Griffith