Club Statement – ‘Stand As One’ & ‘White Ribbon Walk’ this saturday
As we reach the business end of the season and the action on the pitch hots up we want to take this opportunity to reiterate our commitment to the Club’s Stand As One policy and invite fans and community members to the White Ribbon Walk this Saturday ahead of the Aveley FC match.
The Beavers are very proud to be a club that represents supporters, players, and staff from all walks of life. The Club and its supporters believe that football is a sport that unites people, breaking down barriers and promoting inclusivity. Everyone involved with the Club is working hard to deliver value to the local community. We work hard to align our values with both global and local charities in order to use football as a platform to reach local people and improve their lives and show the world what our community stands for. Through our strategic partner Movember we are delivering the award winning Ahead of the Game mental health programme to coaches and adults in our youth system, and by working with local partners such as homeless charity SPEAR, we are working to provide on the ground support to people when it is most needed.
This Saturday we are very proud to be hosting Richmond Borough’s White Ribbon Walk, to drive awareness of violence against women. Local campaigners, residents, and government officials will be meeting at Hampton Square at 1pm and walking through the borough to end at the Beveree and enjoy the game against Aveley FC. White Ribbon is the UK’s leading charity engaging men and boys to end violence against women and girls and we want to work with them to use football as a way to raise awareness and engage our fans in supporting their message.
We are a family focused, community club. We pride ourselves on creating an environment where fans of all ages, race, religion, gender or sexuality feel safe and welcome at The Beveree. Everyone at the club has a part to play in this and that is why our Stand As One policy has a zero tolerance approach to any anti-social or discriminatory behaviour. We all have a role to play in creating a safe community for all fans both in the stadium and online.
We all share a passion for the Beavers and for the community we are building. Senior members of staff are highly visible on match days and are always open to healthy discussion to hear any issues or concerns fan’s might have about the club or the behaviour of any fans or staff. We can also be reached via email enquiries@hamrichfc.com. Hostility, intimidation and foul language will not be engaged with.
We must all work together in creating a safe and pleasurable environment for both players and supporters to play and watch their team and we ask any fans to identify any supporter they see involved in any disorder or anything that goes against the Stand As One Policy and our values.
Below is the original Stand as One announcement from the start of the season:
STAND AS ONE ANTI-DISCRIMINATION POLICY AHEAD OF THE RETURN TO THE BEVEREE
THE STAND AS ONE POLICY FORMS PART OF THE CLUB’S FOUR COMMITMENT AREAS, INCLUSIVITY, ENVIRONMENT, YOUTH, AND MENTAL HEALTH.
Ahead of the return of football to the Beveree Stadium, Hampton & Richmond Football Club is very proud to announce its Stand As One policy. The policy will see a zero tolerance approach to discrimination of any kind on match days and at any time at the ground - making the ground a safe place in the community for all fans.
The Beavers are very proud to be a club that represents supporters, players, and staff from all walks of life. The Club and its supporters believe that football is a sport that unites people, breaking down barriers and promoting inclusivity. As we take to the pitch, we stand shoulder to shoulder, displaying unwavering support for our team and mutual respect for one another.
The Stand As One Policy is designed to formalise the values that our amazing fans bring to the Bev, outlining:
Zero Tolerance for:
Any form of abuse, xenophobia, or discriminatory behavior towards fans, players, staff or referees, whether it be slurs, chants or gestures aimed at race, religion, gender or sexuality, will not be tolerated. Those found engaging in such actions will be dealt with severely, including immediate ejection from the stadium and a ban from future matches.
Report and Support:
We encourage all fans to report any incidents of xenophobia or discrimination they witness or experience. Together, we can maintain an environment that fosters respect and celebrates our differences.
Beyond the Bev:
All Beaver’s supporters not only stand against abuse and discrimination at the Bev but also encourage supporters to report any abuse they see on social media or outside the ground. If identified, those engaging in such actions will not be welcome at the Bev or on the Club’s channels.
Community Commitments
In order to continue to build the Club and the ground into a community hub that not only serves our community but also represents its values and identity, we have today also announced four key Community Commitment areas.
Inclusivity - As part of the Stand As One policy, volunteers and staff working for the club will be asked to sign a volunteer code of conduct that commits everyone to the values of the club. We believe football can be force to bring the community together rather than divide it. In addition to the Stand As One policy we will be working with our fanbase to ensure they can feel safe when they come to our games as well as putting in initiatives to help protect staff, players, coaches and matchday referees from any abuse they may receive both in person and online. We will be hosting a series of workshops with fans and our Youth teams to help educate them on the effects of abuse and how we can all work together to help make football matches a safe space.
Empowering Youth - At Hampton & Richmond we believe that our future success on and off the pitch will be driven by empowering youth in the club and the community. Our goal is to provide youth with life choices to become the best versions of themselves by delivering a thriving, welcoming and future looking club. In addition to the youth focus our mental health commitment has, a big part of our youth policy is to provide our Academy work experience program, whereby our academy players get an opportunity to work at all levels of the football club on matchdays and beyond. From working in the club shop and turnstiles to filming our matches and managing our social media accounts, we want to provide a broad training in football work experience beyond the pitch and fitness work. As part of the program, at the end of their rotations academy players will be able to present back to senior members of staff their ideas on how we can improve as a club.
Environmental impact - Given its role in the community we believe that a football club should lead the way in making decisions that help to reduce negative environmental impact. As a first step we are looking at ways that we can make matchdays at the Bev as environmentally friendly as possible by going cashless and removing paper ticketing. We are working to recycle all matchday waste and this is something we are working with our suppliers on this season. We recognise that this is an area where we have a lot of work to do and we are looking at ways we can reduce our carbon footprint and how we can help the wider Richmond Borough to reduce theirs too.
Mental Health: Movember - Ahead of The Game. Our front of shirt partnership with leading mental health charity Movember is not only about raising funds for a great cause but also about delivering mental health training in our community. Movember’s ‘Ahead of the Game’ programme uses the sporting environment to teach young athletes, parents and coaches within community sport how to talk and approach mental health. It is one of the most evidenced sport-based programmes in the world, with considerable demonstrable efficacy and impact.
These Community Commitments are an initial step in our long term vision to deliver a thriving and successful community club. We designed these areas from feedback from our staff, supporters, and local stakeholders and will continue to work with everyone in the community throughout this season to further develop and add to these areas.
Will King, Managing Director at the Beavers said:
‘We are very proud that fans see the Bev as a safe place where they are accepted and are at home. The Stand As One policy is designed to formalise that togetherness we feel on every match day, and send a message to all fans and players in NLS and beyond that there is zero tolerance of discrimination or xenophobia of any kind at the Bev.
‘We wanted to formalise the Stand as One commitment as one of our Community Commitment areas. At Hampton & Richmond we have massive ambitions for the football side of the club, but also for the community impact we can deliver. The community commitments announced today are just the start, and we want fans to come on this journey with us to build a community club that delivers excellence on and off the pitch.’