Football fans get 'on the ball' with free period products at AFC Bournemouth

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First Team
FEMALE fans visiting AFC Bournemouth's Vitality Stadium will notice something different this weekend - free period products courtesy of the Cherries Trust.

The Trust is backing the national 'On The Ball' campaign ,a UK-wide initiative set up by fans to improve the matchday experience for female fans.

There are now more than 50 clubs signed up, from this weekend's visitors Liverpool to non-league Curzon Ashton, but the Cherries are unique in that it is fans, not the club who are stepping forward to make a difference.

James Swyer, secretary of the independent supporters group, Cherries Trust, noted "Period poverty is a growing issue and we're delighted to do what we can to help. As soon as we head about On The Ball, the board all agreed we had to get involved."

The Trust has used some of its reserves to start a supply of free products throughout the ground and are calling on fans to help out if they can. Free products will be supplied in all female and disabled toilets around the ground and fans are being encouraged to bring any additional items they can to replenish supplies in future weeks.

James added "I'm really proud that we've got this off the ground. As a Trust, we didn't want to sit by and let this opportunity pass, so we put our heads together and decided we could do it ourselves. We want AFC Bournemouth to be as inclusive as possible and if that means making matchdays a bit easier for a key segment of our fanbase, we're in."

Initial support from fans has been encouraging. Lifelong fans Sophie and Alice Curtis were the first to lend their support, with Alice saying “We are so pleased the Cherries Trust have implemented this fantastic campaign. I'm sure many women can relate to the uncomfortable experience of being caught short, or forgetting to be as prepared as they'd like when it comes to their period, so ensuring AFC Bournemouth has the facilities to combat this is vital for a key area of our fanbase.” Sophie went on the add “The On The Ball campaign aims to eliminate the taboo around period discussion which we hope this will contribute to. As we know the club are keen to be as inclusive as possible, we are delighted that the Cherries Trust have stepped in and supported this campaign, and shows the progressive nature of the Cherries Trust team.”

Erin Slaven, one of the three Celtic fans who formed On The Ball is also full of support: “We’re so proud of the fact our campaign is grassroots and fan led - The Cherries Trust have exemplified this in their move to provide free period products at Dean Court.”

Slaven added “We are so excited that Bournemouth fans are organising and making the change they want to see at their club. Well done to James Swyer and all at Cherries Trust for making this happen!”

The Cherries Trust is hoping to find a sponsor to help support the initiative and are contacting local companies in order to generate support. If you are interested in supporting the campaign, please contact them on cherriestrust@gmail.com

How you can help
  1. Get in touch - however you feel about the campaign let us know by emailing cherriestrust@gmail.com
  2. Spread the word - we're still a relatively new Trust. Get the message out as much as you can.
  3. Give what you can - please feel free to bring along items to add to the boxes at the ground.
 
I can think of a few fans (not necessarily female) who should take up the offer almost every week just to keep the sand out of their vag
 
Still morally wrong the VAT element because we have to obey the EU rules. All very well donations to charity by the Government they should take a stand and make these products VAT exempt.
 
hba1 said:
Still morally wrong the VAT element because we have to obey the EU rules. All very well donations to charity by the Government they should take a stand and make these products VAT exempt.
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Is that true? We only add VAT to tampons and pantyliners because of the EU? Just it's weird that there are different VAT rates across the EU, I'd have thought that if it was a standardised thing then they'd have standardised the lot, no??
 
cockbeard said:
Is that true? We only add VAT to tampons and pantyliners because of the EU? Just it's weird that there are different VAT rates across the EU, I'd have thought that if it was a standardised thing then they'd have standardised the lot, no??
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In October the European Parliament voted that the VAT no longer needs to be applied.

So it’s now in the hands of the UK government. Whether Brexit happens or not doesn’t have anything to do with it
 
Aaah, I completely misread hba1, I thought it was that EU said VAT MUST be applied. Unfortunately I can't see this govt rushing to do anything that lower the inbound revenue even a jot
 
I really can't see why football is the vehicle for this...what is the connection.
Apart from that we are in 2018 and 100 years down the line from the suffragette movement and there is 'period poverty'? Am I dreaming this?
 
SlowDownDerek said:
This is a hopeless point for two reasons. Firstly razors are not a medical necessity and secondly they are used by both sexes so the 'PC gone mad' argument is nonsense too.
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You are not wrong.
Razors go missing regularly in my house.
Think I am married to a Silverback with hirsutism.
 
SlowDownDerek said:
This is a hopeless point for two reasons. Firstly razors are not a medical necessity and secondly they are used by both sexes so the 'PC gone mad' argument is nonsense too.
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If we're being honest, tampons and liners are not a medical necessity either. In fact far better from a hygiene, environmental, and economic point of view would be to use cups. But just like reusable nappies, we live in a world where everything is disposable so take up would be slow, puzzled, or non-existent which is a shame
 
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