We see our role as being one to represent the views of the supporters to the Club and to support the Club on behalf of the supporters and our members.
We are very fortunate that relationships between the Trust and the Club are very good. That allows a trusting relationship between the two, where both continue work hard to fully implement the Team Rochdale mantra.
There is a constant dialogue between the Trust and the Club, and twice per year, we will formally sit down with the Board of Directors to ask them questions that have been sent in by Trust members. The responses to the questions are published on our website providing an opportunity that many other clubs’ supporters do not get. In addition to this, we will regularly have informal meetings with the Club to discuss matters of the day many of which are published on our website.
This year, we are working hard with the Club to improve the matchday experience. We have already started this by conducting a survey on the kiosks at the ground, and the information we receive will be discussed with the Club, with a plan to ensure that improvements are implemented on the back of supporter feedback. Further surveys will look at things like the bars, the facilities at the ground, Club shop, ticketing etc.
We have lobbied the Club in the past to ensure that supporters have had input into the choice of kits, and we have seen that implemented in both of the last two seasons. We raised concerns over the way the Season Ticket promotions have been handled, and supporters seem to agree that the process has been much smoother this time round. We spoke to the Club about concerns over the closure of the Pearl Street stand for the Bromley Cup game leading to a compromise of seating in the Willbutts being made available to Dale supporters.
Historically, we have made a number of donations to the club. The most recent one was when we donated £30,000 to fund the necessary improvements for the Floodlights to bring them up to EFL regulations. Truth be told, it’s been a few years since we made such a donation to the Club, and we are working with the Club behind the scenes on a project that will benefit the next generation of Dale supporters, and we hope to make an announcement on this very soon.
Membership of the Trust is just £10 for the 2018-19 season. Join hundreds of other Dale supporters by becoming a member either online or by visiting the Trust desk before any Saturday home game.