Safe standing
UPDATE - August 2022 - West Ham fans deserve safe standing
Nine out of 10 West Ham fans support safe standing at the London Stadium, with the Bobby Moore lower and the Sir Trevor Brooking stands (behind the goals at each end) being the preferred locations. That is the categoric result of a fan survey conducted by the West Ham United Supporters’ Trust.
More than 80% (81.83%) of fans strongly support safe standing and a further 10% (9.63%) somewhat support it. Asked how important introducing safe standing was, the average response was nine out of 10, making it a top priority.
Favourite locations were the Bobby Moore lower (the home end), with more than 90% support, followed by the Sir Trevor Brooking lower (where a proportion is reserved for away fans), with nearly 70%. The Billy Bonds lower had 36% support and the West Stand lower 29%.
Asked if fans would move to a safe standing location 28% said definitely, 11% probably and 28% would if they could be sure to move with friends and family.
WHUST chair, Sue Watson said: “Watching West Ham is too exciting to stay in your seat. Standing has been shown to be safe. A sensible solution allows those who prefer to be seated or who cannot stand to have clear lines of sight but makes standing safely available to those who want it. Safe standing cannot come too soon to the London Stadium.”
There will need to be significant consultation to work out the details and we believe this should begin at once.
WHUST would like to discuss:
The introduction of safe standing, with the initial priority areas being the lower tier of the Bobby Moore and Sir Trevor Brooking stands. These two areas could be test zones with lessons learned fed into further safe standing areas, assuming demand continues.
The introduction of safe standing must consider a range of issues including:
· Enabling those who wish to move into the standing area and those who wish to move out to do so, with their current friends and family.
· Those standing not to block the view of the remaining seated areas.
· Priority consideration given to disabled fans to ensure no loss of view or proximity.
· A range of pricing for standing tickets so it is not priced out of the range of ordinary fans.
Background information
The West Ham survey follows the announcement in early July from sports minister Nigel Huddleston that clubs can introduce safe standing. The evidence collected from trials at Cardiff City, Chelsea, Manchester City, Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur found controlled standing was safer than the current arrangement where fans stand in among seating.
The final report concludes:
· The exit of fans from the stadia is more uniform because the barriers limit spectators’ ability to climb over seats to exit more quickly;
· Spectators are lined up more clearly and therefore any risk of overcrowding can be identified, particularly using CCTV;
· Stewards can be put in more locations without risking impacting sight lines;
· There is no evidence to date that the introduction of licensed standing areas has led to an increase in standing elsewhere in stadia
The Trust will work with the Club and the ISC regarding the introduction of safe standing to the London Stadium. The ISC had a face-to-face meeting with the Club in August, safe standing was be discussed and the Club will be coming back with a proposal for the way forward which can be relayed to fans in plain language.
Safe Standing - West Ham fans at Brentford
UPDATE - June 2022 - Safe Standing Survey
With positive feedback from the early safe standing trial that five clubs – four in the Premier League and one in the Sky Bet Championship – have participated in from January 2022, the Trust is inviting supporters to provide their views on the prospect of safe standing at the London Stadium.
We have been liaising with our fellow supporters’ trusts from those clubs that are participating in the pilots. Some of their feedback suggests that before implementation an understanding of supporters feelings towards safe standing is important.
West Ham United is supportive of the principle of safe standing, and we are keen to gain a better understanding of how important it is to us, the supporters, as we plan for the seasons ahead.
Polls of supporters have found significant public support for safe standing in recent years – however, these polls canvas general football supporters in most cases, and do not provide specific, or in-depth, data on the thoughts of West Ham United supporters.
By participating in our survey, you will provide us with important data to help us understand how much of a priority the implementation of safe standing is for West Ham fans, and give us better information on how best to work with the Club and relevant agencies that will be involved.
The survey is open to anyone that could potentially attend a match at the London Stadium - tell others about it.
UPDATE - 24th May 2022
The sports minister today announced that the Government is “minded to support the wider roll-out of licensed standing areas” for the start of next season.
Since January, five clubs – Cardiff City, Chelsea, Manchester City, Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur – have been operating licensed standing areas in designated rail-seated and seated sections for home and away fans, as the Government works towards fulfilling its manifesto commitment on standing legislation.
And today sports minister Nigel Huddleston said that number would expand with a wider roll-out of licensed standing that would allow Premier League and Championship clubs who have met strict conditions to introduce standing areas from the start of the 2022-23 season.
Huddleston’s statement to Parliament today explained that the Sports Ground Safety Authority’s (SGSA) report into the early-adopters shows many benefits to standing sections and the positive safety impact.
Read more about that initial report here.
The ‘Early Adopter Programme’ was intended to enable the Government to evaluate how successful licensed standing areas could be as a strategy to manage persistent standing. The Early Adopter Programme was implemented during the second half of the 2021/22 football season and has been subject to a formal independent evaluation. The evaluation has included a series of match-day visits to observe supporter behaviour and the implementation of safety management practices as well as interviews with a range of staff involved in managing safety at each club such as SGSA inspectors, section supervisors responsible for the licensed standing areas, supporter liaison officers and representatives from both the local police and Safety Advisory Group (SAG).
The report confirmed that installing barriers or rails in areas of persistent standing in seated accommodation continues to have a positive impact on spectator safety, particularly in mitigating the risk of a progressive crowd collapse by limiting forwards and backwards movement’.
The Interim Report has identified a number of further positive impacts of installing barriers or rails. These include: celebrations are more orderly with no opportunity for forwards and backwards movement; egress is more uniform because barriers limit spectators’ ability to climb over seats to exit more quickly; it is easier to identify pockets of overcrowding in these areas; and barriers offer stability for people moving up and down aisles and gangways.
The Interim Report also noted that operating licensed standing areas has the additional benefit of removing ‘the need for safety teams to make spectators sit down, reducing potential conflict between staff and spectators’ while also enhancing the match-day experience of spectators and customer service by enabling clubs to respond to spectators’ seating preferences. In addition, it has concluded that there is no evidence to date that the introduction of licensed standing areas has led to an increase in persistent standing elsewhere in the stadia.
Nigel Huddleston concluded:
“The Government’s approach has been driven by safety considerations throughout and this will continue to be our priority. We are not complacent about spectator safety, nor are we complacent about the safety policies that have served spectators well for many years.
“We will continue to work closely with the SGSA, football clubs, the football governing bodies and local authorities to ensure that spectator safety remains paramount.”
UPDATE - 23 April 2022
Safe standing at grounds has had "a positive impact on spectator safety" and improved the matchday experience, says a report.
Five Premier League and Championship clubs have taken part in a government-commissioned pilot study since January.
Rails in seated areas of grounds have allowed fans to stand while their safety has been independently assessed.
Sports Minister Nigel Huddleston called the findings "very encouraging for fans, clubs and safety groups".
Huddleston said he will "reserve final judgement on a wider rollout until the process is completed".
The interim report by CFE Research, commissioned by the Sports Grounds Safety Authority (SGSA), found that barriers and rails installed in front of seats made goal celebrations more orderly and overcrowding easier to spot.
It also found that entering and exiting rows and aisles was safer because of the "stability" offered by barriers, and that there was reduced conflict between stewards and supporters as staff no longer needed to encourage fans to sit down.
Chelsea, Manchester City, Manchester United, Tottenham and Cardiff City are the five clubs taking part in the 'early adopters' programme set up by the SGSA.
Spectators at many grounds have continued to stand in seated areas, most commonly behind the goals, despite regular warnings from local authorities and police that it is dangerous.
The trial phase will continue until the end of the season and a final report will be submitted to the Department of Culture, Media and Sport.
BACKGROUND
Since 1994-95, it has been a legal requirement for Premier League clubs, and most Championship clubs, to have all-seater stadiums, so there are no standing areas at all. This was a recommendation of the Taylor Report (1990), following the Hillsborough disaster in 1989.
We’ve long argued there is a tradition of fans standing at games as it increases choice, improves atmospheres and ensures supporter safety when hosted in properly managed and licensed standing areas.
In total five clubs – Cardiff City, Chelsea, Manchester City, Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur – will be the first in the top two tiers of football to have licensed safe standing in designated rail-seated and seated areas for home and away fans, as the Government works towards fulfilling its manifesto commitment.
Over the last 18 months the Sports Ground Safety Authority has been gathering evidence on standing areas and has concluded that standing is no less safe than seating where managed properly. If the initial trials prove successful, the expectation is legislation would be widened to cover all stadiums in England’s top two divisions within the next few years.
Sports minister Nigel Huddleston said at the trial launch:
“Fans have long campaigned for the introduction of safe standing, so I’m pleased that this pilot programme will allow us to carry out an in-depth trial at some of our biggest stadia over the remainder of the season, and inform a decision on a widespread roll-out. Safety will be absolutely paramount at all times. Detailed work is being carried out to monitor these early adopters, and the SGSA will work hand-in-glove with football clubs, supporters groups, local authorities and the police.”
The clubs involved in the pilot of licensed standing had to meet certain criteria, covering issues such as:
The necessary infrastructure – such as seats with barriers/independent barriers – which must be in both home and away sections.
Fans must be able to sit or stand in the licensed areas – the seats cannot be locked in the ‘up’ or ‘down’ position.
There must also be one seat/space per person.
The licensed standing areas must not impact the viewing standards or other fans, including disabled fans.
There must be a Code of Conduct in place for fans in the licensed standing area.
Briefing and training must be in place for staff and stewards to ensure only relevant ticketholders are admitted to the licensed standing areas.
CCTV must be in place and offer full coverage of the licensed standing areas.
The ground must consult with its Safety Advisory Group about plans for the licensed standing areas.
Licensed standing areas must be made available to both home and away supporters and in achieving this, away supporters should also be offered seated accommodation within the provision.
Before a club may implement safe standing, the ground management must be able to demonstrate active engagement with supporters, which has helped inform decision making on the size and location of those licensed standing areas. Our working group will also be working with the ISC to ensure that as many supporters as possible have input into this process.
West Ham United have confirmed they are pro-safe standing at the London Stadium. WHUST think offering supporters a choice to stand safely with rail seating, is a positive move and one WHUST as a member of the ISC had requested.
Previously, the Newham Safety Advisory Group have been opposed to safe standing being implemented at the London Stadium. However with the SGSA now advocating safe standing areas being implemented to counter the potential dangerous effects of standing in normal seated areas, they are now likely to licence their use.
As part of work on this we are monitoring the pilots closely and as part of our regular liasion with our fellow London supporters trusts, those clubs involved in the trial are already providing feedback to us. In particular we are looking at how Chelsea and Tottenham are managing their implementation for both home and away fans.
We remember our experiences in the Bobby Moore Lower in our first season at the London Stadium with those supporters wanting to sit down finding themselves amongst those wanting to stand. How will those supporters that become part of the safe standing area and wish to sit down be relocated? Hopefully that is something that is handled with compassion and understanding - but what about away supporters which is outside of the Club’s direct control.
The experience of the trial clubs is that those people that wish to sit should be accomodated at the front of the rail-seating sections, with the area behind them for those wishing to stand . This means that when away tickets are allocated that the attending supporters wishes are collected and those wishing to sit should be allocated tickets from the front of the section.
We’re providing this and other feedback received to the Club.
To understand far more all about Safe Standing, in January 2022 we met with WHUST member Peter Caton who wrote the book - Stand Up Sit Down and Jon Darch who ran the Safe Standing Roadshow.
By the 2019 general election, the Conservatives and Labour both had manifesto pledges saying they would work to explore safe standing. And in September last year, sports minister Nigel Huddlestone announced an 'Early Adopters Programme' to allow selected clubs to permit standing legally. The latest phase of the decades-long safe standing campaign began in January as trial areas saw their first official use in the Premier League.
Stand Up SIt Down by Peter Caton Safe Standing Roadshow
Jon described to us how safe standing and rail seating came about in Germany. There, standing was commonplace with no legal requirement to change it. However FIFA and UEFA subsequently mandated that all matches in competitions that they control be held in all-seater stadiums. This meant that in countries where standing terraces are commonplace, either the stadiums cannot be used at all, or the standing areas must be closed to spectators. Either temporary seats have to be installed or the standing areas must be converted to seating (as is the case with several of the larger stadiums in Germany, many of which were used in an all-seater configuration for the 2006 FIFA World Cup). However this was not acceptable for the vast majority of German supporters so standing areas that could be converted to seating areas came about. So the norm for Bundesliga matches was to have some standing only areas and the exception was UEFA matches that were all seater.
The Germans deployed rail seating which could be in the seated position for UEFA/FIFA matches and then the seat locked upright for other matches. Having the seat locked upright not only reduces the danger of fans standing on the seats, but also allows for more fans to occupy the same area.
The Guide to Safety at Sports Grounds (also known as the Green Guide) is recognised as best practice for the design and planning, and the safety management and operation of sport grounds. Its aim is to assist in the assessment of safe capacity of a sports ground. The Green Guide provisions for standing areas permit 1.8 standing fans per the space typically required for a seat. While the arithmetic shows that such ratios can be achieved based on the current Green Guide rules for conventional standing areas and while similar formulae for calculating standing capacities in rail seat areas may one day be published, it is not the amount of viewing deck space alone that will determine permissible standing capacity. The London Stadium is currently licenced for 60,000 spectators, although it has a capacity of over 66,000 seats in football mode. The current limiting factors going beyond 62,500 spectators are the provision of toilets and catering facilities and the managed egress of all the spectators.
The current regulations for the pilot trials insist that fans must be able to sit or stand in the licensed areas – the seats cannot be locked in the ‘up’ or ‘down’ position and that there must also be one seat/space per person. Jon hopes that these will be changed in due course.
We would like to hear your views on safe standing at the London Stadium to feed into the discussions with the Club.