OXVOX News - Issue 3

VOX
Supporter of
the Year Trophy
awarded to
Michael North
Recently at the training ground we
presented the OxVox ‘Womble’
Supporter of the Year trophy to
Michael North. Michael is pictured
receiving the trophy from Karl
Robinson. Michael is the first
winner of this annual award voted
for by supporters and given to
the fan voted from a shortlist
nominated by fans as having made
a great contribution to the life of
the club.
Michael receives
the trophy from
Karl Robinson
Chris Williams gave a tour of the
training ground and Club CEO
Niall McWilliams, Manager Karl
Robinson and Club Psychotherapist
Gary Bloom greeted people and
answered questions. The morning
was rounded off by everyone
watching the players’ training
session.
OX VOX
THE OXFORD UNITED
SUPPORTERS’ TRUST
Fellow nominee Ron Slater was
also present as was Paul Peros the
OxVox Chair and a number of fans
who had responded to an online
invitation to attend. Unfortunately
the other two nominees, Mark
Lambourne and Christopher Derry,
were unable to attend due to work
commitments.
Inside:
The trophy in the name of Andy
‘Womble’ James RIP was created
by U’s fan Paul Smith. It will remain
on display in the training ground.
The legend on the trophy
reads ‘Andy James
Award Oxford United
Supporter of the Year
Presented by OxVox’.
It was 20 years ago today... 20 years of OxVox
Crowdfunder for Joey’s family
Season tickets • AGM
Issue 3 June 2022

It was twenty years ago today…
A short retrospective to
mark the launch of OxVox
20 years ago.
OxVox was formed just over 20 years ago,
on March 21 2002, with a public launch
meeting at Blackbird Leys Leisure Centre
compered by BBC Oxford’s Jerome Sale
and with speaking contributions from Rosie
and Mike Ford.
2
The kick off
Work to set up the trust had
been going on for some months
with the help of Supporters
Direct, the then national umbrella
organisation for trusts (now the
Football Supporters Association).
The previous FOUL group, whose
sole aim had been to ensure the
club survived the move away
from the Manor, disbanded and a
fluid working group was formed
to establish the aims and remit
of the new group and to get it
going. Help came from former
FOUL members, from individuals
as diverse as Charlie Methven and
the late Andy James (Womble),
and from others too numerous to
mention.
Heated debates ensued, but
none more so than the choice
of a name! OxVox could easily
have been called UFO (for United
Fans of Oxford), TrustUs (for
United’s Trust, I suppose), or
OFT (for Oxford Fans’ Trust).
OUFC programme editor Martin
Brodetsky came to the rescue
with his suggestion of OxVox,
which won
the vote
among the
working
group and
was duly
registered.
Early
attempts
at logos
are
amusing
to look
back on.
Early years
Things moved
swiftly and by
the time of
the first AGM
in September
2002 the trust
had over 150
members and had appointed
its first ‘official’ committee
under Chris Davis as Chair.
Looking back at the first year
achievements a couple of familiar
issues emerge: club dialogue on
ticket prices and ‘Kids for a Quid’
promotions, and the setting up
of a public fans’ forum, along
with a couple of specifics from
the time: getting the fans ‘brick
wall’ in a publicly visible location,
and working on collaboration
between the County Council and
club to launch Oxford Learning
United (a successful study centre
for mid-teens based in the
former Press Box area).
Since that AGM 20 years ago,
the club has had 11 permanent
managers (Ian Atkins, Graham
Rix, Ramón Díaz, Brian Talbot,
Jim Smith, Darren Patterson,
Chris Wilder, Gary Waddock,
Michael Appleton, Pep Clotet, and
Karl Robinson), with only Chris
Wilder and Michael Appleton
securing promotions. Five years
in League 2 were followed by four
in the Conference until James
Constable’s 23 goals in 2009-
10 helped secure promotion
back into the Football League.
Six years later, in 2015-6, Kemar
Roofe’s 26 goals took us into
League 1. Players and managers
have come and gone, and it is a
sobering thought that for fans
under 25 the Grenoble Road
stadium is all they will have
known.
Growth and activity
Over the 20 years, membership
of the trust rose gradually to 600
in April 2016 and more quickly to
1,000 in May 2018, since when,
during the covid pandemic, it has
slipped back slightly and now
stands at just over 950. That’s a
good percentage of our home
support, though we do of course
aim to grow it further.
It is difficult in a short piece to
cover the variety of activities
the trust has been involved
with over the years. Aside from
the regular dialogue with the
club on matters of interest
to fans, from time to time we
have run community events
including five a side football
competitions, quiz nights, food
bank collections, and raffles.
During the Conference years
we created the 12th Man Fund
which raised £60,000 to support
loan players. Sponsorships
have included kit purchases for
local youth football, a scheme
called ‘One of our own’ to fund
tickets for children in care, and
other initiatives including player
sponsorships. More recently
we funded equipment for the
sensory room.

Visible projects at the ground
include the external OUFC stand
logos, the trophy outlines and
OUFC signage pitchside on
the South Stand, and the East
Stand mural. Off the field, in
2013 work with the City Council
under then Trust Chair Mark
Sennett saw the first listing of
the Kassam Stadium as an Asset
of Community Value (ACV),
protecting it, for five years,
from sale without notification to
OxVox and creating a community
right to bid for supporters in the
event of a proposed sale. The
listing was successfully renewed
for a further five years in 2018.
Recent years
More recent work will be familiar
to many fans and includes
support for the Cherwell
Community Larder, installation
of a Blue Plaque at the Britannia
Inn to mark the site of founding
of the club, organising flags,
banners and videos for the two
playoff campaigns, setting up
the OxVox ‘Womble’ Supporter
of the Year award, designing and
funding the East Stand Mural,
helping with banners for Joey
Beauchamp and Mickey Lewis,
and running Thursday night
Zoom calls during lockdown.
The future
We now face a challenge with
the Stratfield Brake stadium
proposal which is similar in some
What is a supporters’ trust?
A supporters’ trust is a formal, democratic and not-for-profit
organisation of fans who attempt to strengthen the influence of
supporters over the running of the club they support.
What does that mean in practice?
Any fan can join, pay a small fee, receive regular news updates,
help the trust to help the club, and if they wish stand for the
elected committee which runs the trust. Our fees ensure our
independence from the club – we can cover the essential costs of
running the trust, and from time to time sponsor activities which
benefit the club and community.
What influence does a trust have?
That varies across the country. Some clubs are owned wholly or
in part by their trusts, at others trusts are represented on club
boards, at others trusts are consulted or in regular dialogue with
club owners and officials. OxVox is in the latter group and we
enjoy a constructive dialogue with OUFC. The common ground is
that trusts aim to become valued partners with their clubs and to
bring to each club the views and ideas of the fan base.
How can I help?
Join the trust, have your say, and help us to grow further.
ways to that which faced FOUL
back in the late 1990s. The new
stadium is required to enable the
club to move forwards. Much has
been learnt from the Grenoble
Road ‘experience’ about the
difficulties along the road to
success and sustainability. This
time, unlike in the 1990s, the club
is starting from a much stronger
place, but the challenges should
not be underestimated. Paul our
Chair and every member of the
committee are working hard to
ensure that the Stratfield Brake
proposal has the widest possible
public support from United fans,
from the local community in the
Kidlington area, and from the
wider public in Oxfordshire, and
of course from local decision
makers.
Please join and help us!
Keep on
running
Throughout the month of May
Oxford United fan Joe Nicholls,
part of the Oxford United
Fanatics group, completed
eleven 7km runs, rasing funds
along the way for Oxfordshire
MIND and Joey Beauchamp’s
family.
He was joined on his runs by
Oxford United legends James
Constable and Paul Moody.
Speaking about his motivation for
the challenge Joe said: “I want to
help Oxfordshire Mind to be able
to support more people and for
this challenge to raise awareness
and to help people understand
that someone is always there and
life can turn around.
“I know that Oxfordshire Mind
does so much to help those in
need, and doing the eleven 7ks is
my way of giving something back
to them and helping provide for
Joey’s daughters.”
If you would like to support
Joe you can donate at:
www.gofund.me/9972b003
3

Season tickets – discussion with OUFC
In an email on 4 May we asked
members to send us any
comments on the season ticket
pricing arrangements for 2022-3
announced by Oxford United. In
parallel we asked on Twitter for
approval ratings for the prices
and any further comments, which
attracted almost 250 replies,
two thirds of which were happy
with the pricing and one third
less than happy. We very much
appreciate the emails received
from some 55 of you expressing
your views. We’ll be getting
round to sending individual
replies to you in due course.
Each of your comments was
carefully read and key points
extracted by Trevor. He and
Janine Bailey of the Supporters
Panel (OUSP) collaboratively
put together a report to the club
which was sent to them on 10
May, OUSP having also received
supporter feedback. The report
contained some anonymised
extracts from the comments, to
illustrate the key points. Since
then we have received comment
and feedback from the club, and
dialogue continues.
Some key points from the report
sent to the club
• The £10 charge for a physical
season ticket was disliked by
many who commented, and
some viewed it as excessive
or a price increase ‘by stealth’.
Some families with juniors
were concerned that they
would have a charge of £10
per family member.
• The need for a smartphone
was raised and would, some
wrote, discriminate against
older fans and youngsters
who may be less likely to own
the technology.
• Many commented on
practical aspects of using
digital tickets. The need for
a comprehensive guide was
a common theme. Such a
guide would dispel some
concerns, for example the
false impression that a mobile
or wifi signal was required to
access the ticket.
• Aspects of the marketing
were criticised. A false
narrative of a price freeze had
emerged in local media. There
was a lack of information on
hospitality packages ie the
1893 club. Comments were
received that opportunities to
grow the season ticket base
were being missed and that a
means of an existing season
ticket holder introducing a
newcomer at a discount could
have been introduced.
• Concerns were raised about
group bookings adversely
affecting some season ticket
holders particularly in South
Stand Lower.
In response the club has noted a
number of points.
On pricing, the club did not
promote a ‘price freeze’
narrative. It seems to us that
whether an individual sees an
increase depends partly on
whether they are comparing last
year’s early bird price with this
year’s offer, and partly on some
price adjustments to some areas.
We thought a clearer comparison
of like with like across the two
seasons would have been helpful
to fans. A small increase was
acceptable to many.
The club is planning to issue a
full guide on the use of digital
tickets in the coming weeks,
which we warmly welcome. We
and OUSP have asked to review
the content before it is issued,
to ensure that all anticipated
concerns are dealt with. We
regret that it wasn’t discussed
earlier and made available with
the initial launch.
The club has confirmed that
there will be no change to the
£10 season ticket charge. We
would have preferred no charge
and no ticket as the default, with
the option to have a card being
available on request but without
the additional charge. Although
almost all adults under 55 in the
UK own a smartphone, only 65%
of over 65s use one (source:
statista.com). These older fans,
and juniors too young to have a
smartphone, are groups that will
need a physical card.
The club will also review the
operation of group booking
schemes and welcomes further
comment on this issue.
We have also established that
there will be fuller consultation
with OxVox and OUSP next year
before announcements are made.
About OxVox
We’re a non profit
making Supporters Trust,
run by fans, for fans,
with membership open
to all Oxford United
supporters everywhere!
We are wholly independent
of Oxford United Football
Club, but always seek positive
dialogue with the Club’s
owners, executive officers and
staff.
We operate on a democratic,
one member, one vote
principle with annual elections
and regular Committee
meetings.
We are committed to the
success of our Football
Club and having proactive
and mutually beneficial
communication with all
stakeholders, including
the local community, local
councils, relevant media, the
Club and other supporters
groups.
To find out more, or join us,
visit www.oxvox.org.uk
4

AGM held on
27th November 2021
MINUTES
1. Welcome and introductions
Attendees were Paul Peros, Ali
Wolfe, Simon Hathaway, Trevor
Lambert, Ian Coleman, Robert
Weavers, Ben Heath from the
trust committee and 23 other
members. Apologies had been
received from 11 members
including Maurice Earp, Michelle
Young and Jemma Hayward from
the committee.
Paul began by welcoming all
those attending despite the
freezing weather. The pandemic
had made for a very tough 18
months and it was great to be
able to meet fans again.
2. Result of election of Board
members
The members up for re-election
this year, Trevor and Maurice,
were returned uncontested as
there were fewer candidates
than places available on
the committee. Hence no
membership voting was required.
We continue with nine elected
members plus Michelle Young
who has been recently co-opted,
initially until the next AGM as per
the trust’s rules. Michelle brings
great experience in financial
roles and in working with one of
the country’s leading stadium
builders.
3. Resolution – Independent
Examination of accounts
Trevor explained the need for the
meeting to agree a resolution
to continue next year to accept
an independent examination of
accounts at nominal cost rather
than undertake a full audit at a
cost of several hundred pounds.
We were fortunate to have the
help of Nicola Bateman FCCA
who has donated her fee to
the trust in recent years. The
resolution to continue with this
process was passed unanimously
on a show of hands.
4. Treasurer’s report and
accounts
Trevor introduced the accounts
for the year to September 30
2020 – download http://www.
oxvox.org.uk/wp-content/
uploads/2021/12/OXVOX_
ACCOUNTS_2020_Final.pdf
He noted that the year to
September 30 2021 had ended:
the accounts for that year are in
preparation and will be reported
at the next AGM, which should
ideally be held before the end
of March 2022 to get the AGM
schedule back on track.
Key points: Nicola Bateman
FCCA had again acted as the
independent examiner of the
accounts – thanks to her for
her careful work, and as in
previous years, she had kindly
waived her fee which we had
allocated to our fundraising for
projects. Turnover of £9867
and expenditure of £8970 had
resulted in a surplus of £897 on
the year. The turnover was higher
than usual due to £5660 having
been raised for the East Stand
Mural against a cost of £6224,
the remaining £564 having been
paid from trust funds. The Jim
Smith surfer had incurred a net
cost of £350 from trust funds
after donations from fans and the
players. The Blue Plaque at the
Britannia Arms, commemorating
the formation of the club, had
cost £502 from trust funds.
Other spending had been
administrative. On the income
side, membership fees had
totalled £3542 but there were
many life membership updates,
which had implications for future
income. The trust held £14613
in its accounts at the end of the
financial year.
5. Performance report and
projects
Paul reported verbally on the
work of the committee and
introduced other committee
members to describe projects in
which they were involved.
This had been a strange time for
OxVox with covid limiting our
ability to engage in projects. We
had tried to support members,
fans and the club at this difficult
time.
Flags and banners: The trust had
arranged banners and flags for
the playoff semi-final games in
both seasons and the Wembley
playoff final of 2020. In each
case we had great support from
fans in loaning their flags and
in helping to install them and
recover them afterwards. It was a
collective effort to try and keep
a presence for the club in the
empty grounds, and everyone
involved can be very proud of its
success.
Fans’ video: We also organised a
fans’ video which was played to
the players before the playoffs
and huge thanks go to Connor
Casey who created the finished
product. Karl Robinson used it
before the matches and told us
that the players really enjoyed it.
Club finances: Paul reported
that with Ben and Michelle he
had recently met Tim Davies,
the club’s financial officer. Paul
introduced Ben who gave a brief
rundown of the club’s overall
financial position, drawing on his
report previously distributed to
members and included in issue 2
of the Vox newsletter. Essentially,
due to its current situation at
the Kassam stadium, the club
was running at an annual loss
of some £3m, which has been
offset in recent years by the
player trading model, currently
with good results. However, it
did presume a continued ability
5

to locate and develop players to
trade for substantial fees, without
unduly weakening the first team
squad and having an adverse
impact on results. The Club is
dependent on shareholder loans
which are less than some other
clubs but ultimately repayable to
the shareholders. Sustainability
in the longer term would require
increasing revenue sources or
shareholders converting loans to
share capital.
Thursday night social: Ali
organised Thursday night Zoom
sessions open to fans feeling
the pressure of lockdowns, or
just wishing to chat with other
fans they were unable to meet
in person. It was really enjoyable
to connect with fans in this way,
and special thanks are due to
James Constable who gave up an
evening to be involved.
Big Brothers Big Sisters: Paul
introduced Robert from the
committee who told us of
his involvement with the Big
Brothers Big Sisters mentoring
project in Oxfordshire (https://
bbbsuk.org/) which is designed
to help young people achieve
their potential and increase their
self-esteem. Robert was meeting
with the club to discuss how
he and OxVox can involve fans
who are interested in becoming
mentors for this exciting project.
Cherwell Larder appeal: We
were unable this year to repeat
our collection for the Oxford
Food Bank due to pandemic
restrictions. Instead, we worked
alongside the club with Emily
Connelly and her band of
volunteers at Cherwell Larder
in Kidlington. The Larder not
only collects and distributes
food to those in need in and
around Kidlington, but they
also provide clothing, cooking
advice, demonstrations and
menu planning, sustainable
food growing kits and advice.
We got involved alongside the
club, who during lockdown had
used the training ground chefs
and kitchen to cook meals from
Larder donations. We visited
a number of times to lend our
support and set up a donation
page which raised £750 for the
work.
Mickey Lewis: After the tragic
loss of club legend Mickey, we
were able to lend our support
in a number of ways including
funding and producing a Mad
Dog tribute banner which can
still be seen in the North Stand
on matchdays.
Vox newsletter: Simon from
the committee was introduced
by Paul and gave a description
of the Vox newsletter, issue 2
of which was circulated at the
meeting and is now available
in online form here. Simon said
that the aim of Vox was to
pull together details of recent
trust activities and provide
an accessible and readable
summary of what the trust was
about, to reach out beyond the
current membership. It is hoped
that Vox will be widely read and
that we will get contributions for
fans and members to expand its
appeal.
OxVox ‘Andy James’ Supporter
of the Year: Paul reported that
we had previously discussed the
creation of an annual award for
supporters and we had decided
the obvious name to attach to it.
It was a marvellous coincidence
to be contacted by Stuart from
Andy’s family who offered to
help and were very happy to see
Andy’s name commemorated in
this way. Paul Smith has made
a terrific wooden trophy shield
that will be awarded annually
to the supporter chosen by the
fans as having made the greatest
contribution to the life of the
club in the previous year. The
club are very supportive and
the first award presentation will
be held shortly at the training
ground, where the trophy will
be on permanent display with
details of the winners. Huge
congratulations go to Michael
North as the first winner. Michael
will be known to many through
his match day stall selling
programmes and memorabilia.
6. Close of AGM
Paul closed with thanks to the
rest of the committee. The
formal business of the AGM was
declared to be completed and
the Q&A session began.
Q&A Session
Q. A member thanked the
committee for their work
and for the regular email
communications.
A. Paul thanked the member for
his comments.
Q. Is the creation of the
supporters’ panel detrimental to
OxVox?
A. Paul said no, and he views
the panel as another step, along
with the work of OxVox, on the
path towards having supporter
representation on the club
board, and for that reason the
committee was on the whole
supportive. The panel has a clear
remit to focus on the match day
experience, just as OxVox has a
wider role primarily focusing on
the medium and long-term issues
for the club and other matters
beyond what happens on a
match day. The different natures
of the two organisations were
important – the panel originating
as a club initiative and not being
membership-based, OxVox being
an independent fans’ initiative
based on a paid membership
model and accountable to its
members. We remain available to
members and fans who wish to
raise issues with us. Where there
are areas of overlap it wouldn’t
matter who resolved an issue.
Q. Is there evidence of a long
term plan for the club?
A. Paul cited the developments
that have taken place over recent
years, including the acquisition
and setting up of a permanent
training ground, the creation
and implementation of the
player development and trading
model, and the building up of the
academy and youth teams and of
the women’s team, as evidence
of long term planning and moves
to grow the club and make it
sustainable.
6

Q. What’s the situation with
the takeover – should we be
worried?
A. Paul’s view is that the delay in
EFL ratification of the takeover
is evidence of a more thorough
approach from the EFL and
is nothing to be particularly
concerned about. Having met
Anindya Bakrie briefly, he
had agreed that in the future
bringing the club and stadium
under common ownership was
an important aim on the path to
long term sustainability. Bakrie
also recognised the need for
greater communication with
supporters and OxVox will work
with him and the board to help
achieve that. It’s unclear at the
present what role Tiger will have
in the future but he is likely to
still be involved. We would also
expect to see and hear more of
Horst Geicke and Eric Thohir.
Q. What about stadium
developments, given the Kassam
stadium license expires in less
than five years?
A. Paul said that everyone
involved is fully aware of the
situation. For the present, the
relationship with Firoka is better
than it has been for some time.
OxVox does not wish to add to
speculation about a new stadium,
or possible sites. We have asked
that fans be kept fully informed
of significant developments
as early as possible, and we
continue to press on the need for
regular open forums with board
members.
Q. What do you think about
further ticket offers e.g. kids for
a quid?
A. Paul said there is obviously a
role for these offers from time to
time, but it should be recognised
that they are sometimes a
loss leader. That said, if they
encourage new young fans, the
fans of the future, to attend then
it is very helpful. Initiatives to fill
the many empty seats are good,
provided that the club does not
lose out financially by doing so.
We have often made suggestions
for ticketing initiatives and have
found the club to welcome ideas,
and on occasion to take them up.
End of meeting
Paul thanked everyone for
attending on an exceptionally
cold afternoon and the meeting
ended at approximately 1.40 pm.
OXVOX AGM 2021 –
RESOLUTION (agenda item 3)
It is hereby resolved that subject
to the provisions of section 4a of
the 1968 Friendly and Industrial
and Provident Societies Act, the
members of the Society shall not
require an audit for the accounts
covering the financial year
ending on 30 September 2021,
when they are presented to the
next AGM held in 2022.
The members of the society
agree that the accounts for
the financial year ending on 30
September 2021 and for which
reports will be laid before the
following AGM do not require a
full audit provided that:
1. The total income for that year
does not exceed the threshold
laid down by FSA/Supporters
Direct for audit exemption
(currently £25,000),
2. An Independent Examination
of those accounts is carried out
in place of the full Audit,
3. The Independent Examination
is carried out in line with the
best practice of FSA/Supporters
Direct as set out in the Guidance
Notes,
4. A report from the Independent
Examiner is included within
the Accounts and circulated to
members.
The Society notes that
1. The Independent Examination
does not carry the same weight
as a full Audit,
2. The members of the Trust
instruct the Board to identify a
suitably qualified practitioner to
undertake the review,
3. The Board shall agree the
appointment of the examiner
and shall agree the terms of that
appointment in writing,
4. FSA/Supporters Direct has no
liability in respect of any Trust
Accounts,
5. FSA/Supporters Direct will
use the report of an Independent
Examiner when considering your
Trust’s eligibility for membership
as against criteria in its
membership policy.
Note: This resolution must be
passed by 80% of the members
voting in person and by proxy,
and only comes into force if it is
passed by that margin AND the
numbers voting against do not
equal more than 10% of those
members eligible to vote.
7

Life Members’
Reward Scheme
OxVox are delighted to welcome all life members of the
Trust to the OxVox reward scheme.
LIFE
MEMBERSHIP
REWARD
CARD
OX VOX
THE OXFORD UNITED
SUPPORTERS’ TRUST
We have teamed up with some
local businesses who have links with
OUFC to offer you some exciting
discounts. We hope that you can
take advantage of some great offers
and at the same time support some
great local firms.
New partners will be added over the
coming weeks and months. Please
present your reward card when
taking up the offers.
If you are a life member and have
not yet received your reward card
please email rewards@oxvox.org.uk
and we will post it to you.
If you wish to upgrade to life
membership please do so via the
‘RENEW’ page on this website.
As the scheme takes off we would
like to invite you, our members, to
add your businesses to the scheme,
to help provide a wide range of
offers. If this is something you are
interested in please contact Maurice
Earp via rewards@oxvox.org.uk
Here are the details of our current partners:
CAIRA Properties and Facilities
Solutions (Abingdon)
cairaproperty.co.uk
Kay Gee’s Off Licence
kaygees.co.uk
fit2run (Abingdon’s specialist
running store)
fit2rundirect.com
Manor Flooring (Wootton,
Abingdon)
manorflooring.co.uk
Buildbase. Watlington Road,
Cowley
buildbase.co.uk
Massage – Kendra Kirkham
wellbeingclinic.com
J. Priest & Son (Oxford)
oxfordsms.co.uk
Topsport Independent Sports
Retailer (Abingdon)
topsportuk.com
For details of the benefits
and discounts on off from our
partners visit: www.oxvox.org.
uk/reward-scheme/
Our Corporate Sponsors:
polytheneuk.co.uk
acutehomes.co.uk
Join the trust
The Trust that makes a
difference and we’d love you be
part of it.
So don’t delay, join today!
Juniors
£5 for 3 years
Adults
£10 for 3 years
Senior £7.50 for 3 years
Life £50
Senior Life £25
Corporate options also available.
www.oxvox.org.uk
enquiries@oxvox.org.uk
VOX • Issue 3 • June 2022