Posted on 17th September 2008
This is a story from the FSF archive – the FSF and SD merged to become the FSA in 2019.
Bradford City FC has become the first football club in Britain to invite concrete proposals from fans on the Safe Standing issue.
Following a lengthy “Stand Up For The Bantams” campaign mounted by City fans and funded and supported by the FSF,
During the course of an official club statement last week, Baldwin said: “Bradford City FC recognises that a number of City supporters wish the club to provide a dedicated ‘Safe Standing’ area in one part of the stadium at Valley Parade. This would provide an option for those supporters who prefer to watch games whilst standing up. The major part of the stadium would retain the existing ‘all-seater’ arrangements”,
“The club will look sympathetically on any practical proposals that are put forward by supporters, which address adequately all the regulatory and resource issues involved.”
The Bantams’ statement has been welcomed by Bradford City Supporters Trust, which came in response to a petition organised by City fan and FSF member Manny Dominguez.
“It is now up to the supporters to persuade the authorities that the time is right for a trial run of Safe Standing at an all-seater League ground, to find the funding, and then to persuade the club to go ahead with the renovations”, a BCST spokesman said.
“One idea would be to turn either the Lower or the Upper Tier of the T.L.Dallas Stand (The ‘Bradford End’) into a Safe Standing area. BCST looks forward to working with Manny and with the national supporters’ organisations including The Football Supporters’ Federation and Supporters Direct (SD).
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The Football Supporters’ Association (FSA) was contacted last night by the Sports Ground Safety Association (SGSA), who told us that the option for football clubs to offer licensed standing at all levels of the game in England and Wales has at last been passed into official Government policy.
As part of our partnership with BeGambleAware, safer gambling ambassador and former England goalkeeper David James has selected a shortlist of six of the best saves from the past 12 months for the Safe Hands Award.
Research commissioned by the Government looking into possible reform of the all-seater legislation has concluded that more trials of standing areas in the top-flight are needed.
In a first at a UK general election, all three of the main political parties have outlined support for standing at the match in their manifestos.
