Guest Post by Paul Christmas
I am very pleased to inform that the West Ham United Independent Supporters’ Association website is now up and running at http://www.whuisa.org
Please visit the site and join as soon as you can. At present we have over 200 members. We’d really like to get as many people as possible involved because numbers will give us credibility. You can join until the end of next season for £3 or until the end of next season for a fiver and we’d love to see as many people on board as possible. U18s can join for free.
For those who are new to this, we want to establish a democratic, transparent, independent, non club owned voice for fans to give honest input into the way things are run. The points of view will come from you the fans to be put forward by WHUISA to the club / stadium operators / Met Police / Newham Council / whoever and we will report back to you.
The aim is to eventually create a formal channel of communication that really represents the fans but that doesn’t rely of the patronage of the Board. We had the SAB but the general consensus was that it did not do the job we hoped it would. If you depend on the club management for your position on any fans organisation you can’t be truly honest. The club will always have the option to exclude you.
We want to be positive in trying to change things to make supporting West Ham a more positive experience. We want to be inclusive and constructive but we won’t shy away from telling the difficult truth if we have to.
Until now West Ham was the only PL club that did not have a supporters association or Trust. We have met with supporters’ groups from other clubs through the FSF and they have had amazing results. We will strive to and can have a similar effect.
There’s been an interim committee set up but once we are established we’ll be looking to get many more people on board. If you want to get stuck in sooner let us know at enquiries@whuisa.org.
The more we have, the stronger our voice will be.
For those who are new to this, we want to establish a democratic, transparent, independent, non club owned voice for fans to give honest input into the way things are run. The points of view will come from you the fans to be put forward by WHUISA to the club / stadium operators / Met Police / Newham Council / whoever and we will report back to you.
The aim is to eventually create a formal channel of communication that really represents the fans but that doesn’t rely of the patronage of the Board. We had the SAB but the general consensus was that it did not do the job we hoped it would. If you depend on the club management for your position on any fans organisation you can’t be truly honest. The club will always have the option to exclude you.
We want to be positive in trying to change things to make supporting West Ham a more positive experience. We want to be inclusive and constructive but we won’t shy away from telling the difficult truth if we have to.
Until now West Ham was the only PL club that did not have a supporters association or Trust. We have met with supporters’ groups from other clubs through the FSF and they have had amazing results. We will strive to and can have a similar effect.
There’s been an interim committee set up but once we are established we’ll be looking to get many more people on board. If you want to get stuck in sooner let us know at enquiries@whuisa.org.
The more we have, the stronger our voice will be.
Here’s to a happier new year both on and off the pitch !!!
Always West Ham United.
Paul Christmas
Joint Chair
WHUISA