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Supporters Trust Election 2020. Questions for Kayleigh West

KayleighJade

New member
Joined
Oct 23, 2020
Messages
15
Location
Exeter
I'm Kayleigh, standing for the trust elections this year, I've been thinking about running for election for the last three years but felt it was important to get some life experience and develop some more skills so I could ensure I was putting the best version of myself forward. I feel now is a good time to do this and I hope that if I get elected I can give something to the Board as well as it allowing me to further grow and develop my skills so I can be better in the future.

I'm an Exeter City fan and love all things ECFC. I have been actively involved in a variety of areas over the last few years, I used to volunteer in the Club Shop on match days, kit launch days, and any time I was needed, I then was officially employed and continued to work every home game for a few years. I slowly became involved in the Club Social Media and would do the Instagram on away days. I eventually moved away from this and became a member of the Trust Communications and Engagement Working Group, here I have been working on video content (much of which is coming soon) social media content (if you are on twitter you will have started to see this), and the podcast which will launch this month. There are a lot of things in the pipeline ready to be released so watch this space over the coming weeks. I have had to stop my involvement whilst elections are ongoing and this has meant a number of things have had to be put on pause until the AGM but whatever the result I am excited to be able to attend meetings and get some of these projects moving again.

My manifesto is below. It was hard to include everything I want to do in 400 words while still making sure it was readable so I'm going to add some supplimentary information here too.

I hit more of the criteria the Trust are looking for than I could fit into my manifesto, of the 6 skills I hit: Law, Marketing PR and Social Media, Business Management, and IT; and of the 4 groups I hit: under 25s, Female, and Disabled.

I also wanted to talk about the older demographic, I remember talking to Maurice in the club shop little over a year ago and him telling me that one of the things that would help him attend games after his fall would be transport. I thought then that there must be other people who had things that could easily be done to make City more accessible to them. I would love the opportunity to see what different individuals would find helpful and to see what the Trust could be doing to coordinate some of these, and potentially if there is any remit from this for partnerships such as our new one with ECI.

I work during the day and as such may not be the fastest to reply to your questions, please know that they are important to me and I will answer as soon as I am able (usually in the evening).

My full manifesto is below :

Having been on the Communications and Engagement working group for the last year I have contributed to some dramatic changes in how the Trust puts out information and produces content. I am passionate about media and should I be elected you can expect to see quality content with a supporter focus being produced regularly. I think supporters should always feature at the heart of everything we do because we all own our football club and it's an incredible and unique position which couldn't happen without supporters.

I also have an interest in the Trust and its place in the wider community, I work at the University of Exeter and feel I have a really unique position in terms of linking the University to Exeter City and bringing in the support of the students. If elected I would be advocating within the Trust for student and young people’s Trust memberships, I also feel for some local fans this would help to bridge the gap between the Junior Grecians and Trust memberships which I know has been raised a number of times over the last few years.

It says on the Trust Election pack this year that the Trust board would be enhanced by someone with a Law background, I studied a degree in law at UWE Bristol and this has given me a broad understanding of legal principles and how these apply. It also asks for marketing and social media experience, in addition to my time in the Communications group I have previously been involved in helping with the Club's social media platforms, specifically Instagram, I am also a professional freelance photographer and videographer which means I have the skills necessary to assist in producing a dynamic range of content outside of standard social media posts.

As a disabled supporter I have worked hard this year to ensure our content is accessible to everyone, including captions on videos, alt text on images, using fonts that are better for dyslexic and visually impaired people. If I was appointed, I would also love to talk to others about their experiences and find new ways together to ensure there are no barriers to accessing and contributing to the Trust. I am passionate about the Trust being available for everyone to enjoy being a part of.
 

Alistair20000

Very well known Exeweb poster
Joined
May 5, 2009
Messages
52,245
Location
Avoiding the Hundred
Your synopsis gives me a lot of helpful information. I can see the areas in which you are particularly interested and where you can add value to the Trust Board.

I have no specific questions for you at this stage Kayleigh and wish you all the best in your campaign.
 

eurogrecian

Active member
Joined
Apr 13, 2004
Messages
1,866
Location
Near Geneva, Switzerland
Hi Kayleigh. First of all, thanks for standing – quite a commitment and good to see some young people prepared to invest time in the club.

Are there any circumstances in which you would agree for the Trust to sell or cede its stake in the ownership of Exeter City – a “yes” or “no” answer please, followed by any explanation you may wish to give to explain your answer. Thanks
 

Grecianpasty

Active member
Joined
Jan 28, 2019
Messages
1,697
Hi Kayleigh,

I would like to know your thoughts on where you think the club is with regards to disability access around the stadium, and where you believe the club should be in reference to social inclusion for disabled supporters?

All the best in the upcoming elections.
 

i8cornwall

Active member
Joined
Jul 2, 2006
Messages
2,745
Hi Kayleigh Firstly good luck in the coming election. I was wandering and be interested to hear yours thoughts on my two questions below:

As someone who isn’t a trust member and someone who is starting to become disillusioned with our trust in its current form what will you offer to people such as my self and ultimately encourage us to join the trust?

and I’d be interested to hear your thoughts on what the trust can do to engage with people aged 18 to 25 who support the club, I see you have mentioned this in your manifesto but would be interested to hear how you would go about this.
 
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KayleighJade

New member
Joined
Oct 23, 2020
Messages
15
Location
Exeter
Your synopsis gives me a lot of helpful information. I can see the areas in which you are particularly interested and where you can add value to the Trust Board.

I have no specific questions for you at this stage Kayleigh and wish you all the best in your campaign.
Thank you for your comments and well wishes!
 

KayleighJade

New member
Joined
Oct 23, 2020
Messages
15
Location
Exeter
Hi Kayleigh. First of all, thanks for standing – quite a commitment and good to see some young people prepared to invest time in the club.

Are there any circumstances in which you would agree for the Trust to sell or cede its stake in the ownership of Exeter City – a “yes” or “no” answer please, followed by any explanation you may wish to give to explain your answer. Thanks
Hi thanks for your question. Under certain circumstances potentially yes. If the Trust could retain a real say in any future club decisions and it was the right thing for the club then it could be right to sell up, we should never discard the option. However, I can't see this particular set of circumstances ever occurring; at least not in the near future.
 

KayleighJade

New member
Joined
Oct 23, 2020
Messages
15
Location
Exeter
Hi Kayleigh,

I would like to know your thoughts on where you think the club is with regards to disability access around the stadium, and where you believe the club should be in reference to social inclusion for disabled supporters?

All the best in the upcoming elections.
Hi and thanks for your question.

There is always more to be done and I fully believe that. My sister is a wheelchair user and found the actual stadium itself to be fairly accessible, but things like the club shop could certainly be improved for accessibility. I know another wheelchair user who volunteers at the club who often needs the doors opening for her and I think we need to do more to ensure people can be independent in moving around the ground.

Another issue I had with bringing my mum to SJP is parking, my mum can't walk long distances and obviously with the sale of the land behind the big bank came the loss of the disabled parking. I would like to see more parking options for those with mobility issues, even if this is on a first come first served basis.

I think over the years the club have put a lot in place to improve accessibility but while people are being excluded or disadvantaged it isn't enough. I don't claim to know all of the issues with the ground and would be interested in speaking to others who have disabilities to find out what they feel could be improved.

One of the things I have focused on in the Comms group is our social media accessibility and it is always great to get feedback, positive or negative on that too, especially when at the moment there is more of SJP coming to the fans than vice versa.

Ultimately I know how my disabilities affect me but I will never be an expert on how other people are affected by theirs and that is why I feel it is so important to ask people what they think could be better, because ultimately everyone is an expert on themselves and what would help them.

In terms of social inclusion the club and Trust should absolutely be pushing for people from all walks of life and all backgrounds to be involved in every aspect of the community that Exeter City creates. I personally would love to see more disabled supporters in positions such as on the Trust board or running the club. I think more can absolutely be done to facilitate and encourage this and would be really interested in hearing from others about what barriers they feel may be preventing this.
 

KayleighJade

New member
Joined
Oct 23, 2020
Messages
15
Location
Exeter
Hi Kayleigh Firstly good luck in the coming election. I was wandering and be interested to hear yours thoughts on my two questions below:

As someone who isn’t a trust member and someone who is starting to become disillusioned with our trust in its current form what will you offer to people such as my self and ultimately encourage us to join the trust?

and I’d be interested to hear your thoughts on what the trust can do to engage with people aged 18 to 25 who support the club, I see you have mentioned this in your manifesto but would be interested to hear how you would go about this.
Thank you for taking the time to ask your questions.
I think for people who are disillusioned, becoming a trust member needs to be more attractive. There are already some good perks such as the silver status (although not necessarily helpful at the moment), discounts in the club shop, and of course the voting rights, but I do think more could be added to this. Potentially a graded membership where there are certain perks for paying in a certain amount i.e. for £2 a month you get your status and 10% discount, but for £10 you get a pen, your status and a bigger discount, obviously using this for examples sake.


I honestly don't think it is too bad a package for £2 a month and in my opinion some of it comes down to marketing. When I used to work in the shop, the amount of people who didn't realize they could get money off for being a trust member was staggering. Also I think there is a lot to be said about giving money into your club and what it means for the fans to be the owners. We have something pretty unique here in Exeter and I think there is so much more that can be done from a marketing standpoint to get people behind the cause and make them feel a part of something. I have already started on this idea, the video in the banner on the website is mine and I have some more videos in the pipeline ready to go. I am also launching a campaign which will shine a light on what Trust members have been up to in their communities and hope that that will make the members feel more connected and like they are a part of something bigger. Its also important to make sure people know what the perks are and this is all communication too.


I have experience of event management and in the long run (Covid permitting) I would love to see some events put on by the trust for its members too, partly to incentivise joining, but also partly to celebrate the members. The Trust is a community organisation, and I think being a part of it should make you feel brought together as part of the community and it's something I would love to see happen in the next few years.


In terms of younger supporters I talk in my manifesto about having a "young person's trust membership" I know the idea has been batted around in the past as a lot of young people get lost in that gap between u18 and full adult membership. This trust membership I would love to see as a partnership between the Trust and CCT, potentially with perks such as discounted football coaching.

I also think for me as a young person I have seen a lot of people say the trust is for older people, and one way that is already being combatted is by more young people getting involved with the trust. If young people are visible within the trust, not necessarily on the board but in the working groups etc too, then more young people will feel like it is something they aren't excluded from and it is something they can get involved with too.

Also with young people I think it is really important to speak their language. Social media is an important way of doing this and I feel we (as a Comms group) are making good progress already. The Trust's engagement on Twitter this month is 213k impressions, compared to the same period last year of 38k impressions. The Trust's improving social media presence I think will play a fundamental role in younger people feeling more connected and therefore more likely to want to be affiliated.
I am excited to see how the video content and podcast contribute to this too.
 

nick_exmouth

Member
Joined
Nov 13, 2004
Messages
941
Location
South Northamptonshire
I think for people who are disillusioned, becoming a trust member needs to be more attractive. There are already some good perks such as the silver status (although not necessarily helpful at the moment), discounts in the club shop, and of course the voting rights, but I do think more could be added to this. Potentially a graded membership where there are certain perks for paying in a certain amount i.e. for £2 a month you get your status and 10% discount, but for £10 you get a pen, your status and a bigger discount, obviously using this for examples sake.
This is nail on head for me - I know a few Trust Members who could give more that their £2 or £5 a month - they need a nudge, a reason to do so - increased perks would be a great way to encourage people to up their subs - great idea, Thanks
 
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