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Bag Limit Size Ban at The Valley - updated policy p13
Comments
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haven't read through but are laptop bags okay or too big?1
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Shoot me down in flames if you so wish...I'm old & ugly enough to cope.
In an effort to comply with the original, poor effort at announcing this innovative policy the day before the PNE match on August 29th, I emailed the relevant address regarding Mr F's medical issues, requesting an exemption certificate.
On returning home from said match, a response had arrived in my Inbox stating " I can confirm that you will be exempt from the bag policy and therefore you will be able to bring your bag into the stadium". Emailed from " Safety Team" to my email address which does not include Mr F's name. NO mention to whom the certificate relates ,or their ID which I had provided, and no indication whatsoever what period/games this certificate covers.
I have posted this previously here but received few if any acknowledgements, apart from a certain Lifer who shall not be named, but who continues to bleat his/her comments that I clearly have nothing better to do than complain about our club....
Following last night's unexpected ( expected by some of us...) developments , maybe more of the faithful will now have their own experiences leading to questioning its validity and modus operandi. The email survey received this morning could be utilised by more than usual recipients to point out the issues they witnessed or indeed experienced themselves last night but that's down to the individual. Whether those views are cascaded to the appropriate department/SMT remains to be seen.
As it stands, and to avoid similar problems on Saturday, perhaps those hoping to attend should send that email to the Safety Team stating they require an exemption certificate....May not even need to elaborate- simply put " health issues requiring a larger bag" . Unless the Safety Team employs someone with experience of medical matters, they're very unlikely to question it & you'll have an exemption certificate for the forseesable future. Although whether it's accepted at point of contact is another matter according to one Lifer this morning.
" OK, mate. Have a butchers at my colostomy bag !"
Until the "relevant people" responsible for such initiatives realise their laissez faire approach to what could potentially have serious implications, needs more work , little is likely to be done.
But following comments aplenty that this additional problem to the already questionable off the pitch matchday experience ( quality of catering, especially in the Fans' Bar, price hikes, etc) may well affect even season ticket holders to question whether they can be arsed to leave their comfy sofas/alternative forms of accessing matches when the cold/wet weather arrives, attendances will inevitably fall further. In addition, the travel issues some of us encountered after the match (which are becoming more frequent on midweek evenings) will be another factor in the "shall I /shan't I ?" question posed in Addick homes. And dare I mention the possibility of less than successful results on the pitch ......
I expect my football club to be PROACTIVE , not REACTIVE. But after last night, maybe it's time for the faithful to let "them" know that enough's enough & that we're sick of being taken for granted otherwise little will change. What's the point of the numerous Fan Consultation Groups & appointed Advisors if we still HAVE to make our individual voices heard ?
Before too long, even the most addickted of us may be forced to consider voting with our feet. If attendances drop, next year's season ticket prices will rise again and it's the faithful fans who ultimately suffer.
Maybe an audience with Gavin Carter is called for ....
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Going to be a major headache for me going forwards for midweek games. I live near Ipswich and always use midweek games as an office day in London. I have my rucksack with my laptop in it with me at match and then I head off back home after game. Company policy says I can't leave laptop in a bag drop off and even if I risked it, queuing up after the match to get my bag back could risk missing the last train back home.
To attend the game last night, I had to ask work security to break their rules and let me leave my bag and laptop behind reception overnight (they said they'd do it as a one off, but not again), then I had to stay over at a friends house in London and do an extra office day in London.
My son is now getting to the point where he could travel to London on his own and meet me to attend midweek games, but he'd have to come straight from college. Can't happen now as he'd have his books with him.
Streaming midweek home games is looking like the way forward unfortunately, as they're now too much hassle to attend.14 -
Anywhere that has a few thousand people attending would be a target.kinveachyaddick said:
Is Charlton-QPR on a Tuesday night likely to ne a high-profile target?redbuttle said:
What about under ground safety and security reasons. Have you seen the terrorist threat level lately?iainment said:Was it in the conditions when STs went on sale? If not can it be enforced under consumer law?
nobody is saying bag’s shouldn’t be searched - they always were
this is purely a money making exercise0 -
This is bonkers.
I've mentioned before that I am the supervisor of a stewarding team at let's call it a major sports ground in London. We have an attendance on a big game of nearly twice what Charlton had last night, a large percentage of whom turn up in the hour before the match starts.
You can bring in any size bag you want. But it will be searched. And searched thoroughly be a well trained set of stewards operating under a supervisor who is on the ball, watching over things carefully and keeping things rolling. And, of course, intervening when necessary.
It works really smoothly.
However, it requires manpower. I can only assume Charlton don't want to pay for this, so they - and other venues to be fair - concoct this requirement, possibly trying to tie it in with the new Martyn's law legislation. .
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I didn’t go last night but got the ‘how was your experience’ email today.Fanny Fanackapan said:Shoot me down in flames if you so wish...I'm old & ugly enough to cope.
In an effort to comply with the original, poor effort at announcing this innovative policy the day before the PNE match on August 29th, I emailed the relevant address regarding Mr F's medical issues, requesting an exemption certificate.
On returning home from said match, a response had arrived in my Inbox stating " I can confirm that you will be exempt from the bag policy and therefore you will be able to bring your bag into the stadium". Emailed from " Safety Team" to my email address which does not include Mr F's name. NO mention to whom the certificate relates ,or their ID which I had provided, and no indication whatsoever what period/games this certificate covers.
I have posted this previously here but received few if any acknowledgements, apart from a certain Lifer who shall not be named, but who continues to bleat his/her comments that I clearly have nothing better to do than complain about our club....
Following last night's unexpected ( expected by some of us...) developments , maybe more of the faithful will now have their own experiences leading to questioning its validity and modus operandi. The email survey received this morning could be utilised by more than usual recipients to point out the issues they witnessed or indeed experienced themselves last night but that's down to the individual. Whether those views are cascaded to the appropriate department/SMT remains to be seen.
As it stands, and to avoid similar problems on Saturday, perhaps those hoping to attend should send that email to the Safety Team stating they require an exemption certificate....May not even need to elaborate- simply put " health issues requiring a larger bag" . Unless the Safety Team employs someone with experience of medical matters, they're very unlikely to question it & you'll have an exemption certificate for the forseesable future. Although whether it's accepted at point of contact is another matter according to one Lifer this morning.
" OK, mate. Have a butchers at my colostomy bag !"
Until the "relevant people" responsible for such initiatives realise their laissez faire approach to what could potentially have serious implications, needs more work , little is likely to be done.
But following comments aplenty that this additional problem to the already questionable off the pitch matchday experience ( quality of catering, especially in the Fans' Bar, price hikes, etc) may well affect even season ticket holders to question whether they can be arsed to leave their comfy sofas/alternative forms of accessing matches when the cold/wet weather arrives, attendances will inevitably fall further. In addition, the travel issues some of us encountered after the match (which are becoming more frequent on midweek evenings) will be another factor in the "shall I /shan't I ?" question posed in Addick homes. And dare I mention the possibility of less than successful results on the pitch ......
I expect my football club to be PROACTIVE , not REACTIVE. But after last night, maybe it's time for the faithful to let "them" know that enough's enough & that we're sick of being taken for granted otherwise little will change. What's the point of the numerous Fan Consultation Groups & appointed Advisors if we still HAVE to make our individual voices heard ?
Before too long, even the most addickted of us may be forced to consider voting with our feet. If attendances drop, next year's season ticket prices will rise again and it's the faithful fans who ultimately suffer.
Maybe an audience with Gavin Carter is called for ....I imagined me going and sent back a criticism of a not publicised policy that seemed to be implemented in a haphazard way. I said if this a first visit many wouldn’t come back.3 -
On the upside as we chose to exit the Caraboa Cup and will no doubt do the same in the FA Cup that will limit the potential for further evening games when more will carry a bag 😉😆
I wonder if the same restrictions apply in our corporate hospitality…3 -
They get their chauffeur's to attend to their baggage.valleynick66 said:On the upside as we chose to exit the Caraboa Cup and will no doubt do the same in the FA Cup that will limit the potential for further evening games when more will carry a bag 😉😆
I wonder if the same restrictions apply in our corporate hospitality…3 -
The bag policy as it stands is on the club web site.As this is the first full season of the policy, the club will work with supporters who bring luggage and bags to the upcoming fixture against Preston North End. Fans requiring a medical exemption or wishing to bring additional luggage are encouraged to email safetyteam@cafc.co.uk by 6pm on Friday evening. For all future matches, there will be an online exemption form available on the club website that supporters can fill out no later than 48 hours before matchdays.I have the exemption email but the policy refers a form but there is no form available as far as I can see. Do I need any thing else?0
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Stuff like this annoys me as it’s never really thought through and just disrupts people who by and large never caused an issue in the first place.It’s a pure and simple money grab under the cloak of a security concern. Charlton aren’t alone in this, we are just piggy backing off the opportunity.
The security at Charlton (and many football grounds) is so flimsy that unfortunately anyone with any danger intent could easily circumvent. Simply saying to a steward you’ve a club exemption for your bag would do it for a start.
Entry can be gained to far more high profile venues like Lords, Ascot, Silverstone with full on hampers, let alone a work rucksack, or a bag of things to support a family being out for 6 hours. All you need is an effective search process established to alleviate the security concern.
Instead of making it difficult and more challenging for our existing support base to attend, we need to be filling up our ground more and then exploring ways of expanding revenue or improving processes. Everyone understands that aside from security there are increased logistical issues with people with big rucksacks in seated areas that are near full.If you are going to go down this route though, have something established and meaningful other than chucking peoples bags behind a desk in a relatively public area with transactional delays delivered after some small subset initial testing. And with a fair bit of time built in for transition. Not just thrown together last minute will muted awareness14 -
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SO many questions !Sark99 said:The bag policy as it stands is on the club web site.As this is the first full season of the policy, the club will work with supporters who bring luggage and bags to the upcoming fixture against Preston North End. Fans requiring a medical exemption or wishing to bring additional luggage are encouraged to email safetyteam@cafc.co.uk by 6pm on Friday evening. For all future matches, there will be an online exemption form available on the club website that supporters can fill out no later than 48 hours before matchdays.I have the exemption email but the policy refers a form but there is no form available as far as I can see. Do I need any thing else?
But silence is golden....1 -
You don’t like reading do you.DOUCHER said:haven't read through but are laptop bags okay or too big?0 -
How many fans would actually need to bring a bag with them for a weekend daytime kickoff, the percentage would surely
be low even allowing for medication needs etc, I do understand that evening games with work lap tops is obviously a concern.
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Thanks, very helpful - i'm all over some threads and not others - i've seen the A4 sized thing and i've seen a few people asking about laptops and stuff - will assume laptop bags are not okay which is a right pain in the arse as i can't trust somebody slinging my work laptop across a reception floor or losing it.Bedsaddick said:
You don’t like reading do you.DOUCHER said:haven't read through but are laptop bags okay or too big?0 -
Just my luck to get stuck behind this bloke last night.
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DOUCHER said:
Thanks, very helpful - i'm all over some threads and not others - i've seen the A4 sized thing and i've seen a few people asking about laptops and stuff - will assume laptop bags are not okay which is a right pain in the arse as i can't trust somebody slinging my work laptop across a reception floor or losing it.Bedsaddick said:
You don’t like reading do you.DOUCHER said:haven't read through but are laptop bags okay or too big?Laptop bags are ok.0 -
Despite sending a chaser email, not heard anything back. Have made alternative arrangements for Saturday now so they can go and fuck themselves.DaveMehmet said:
Cheers, that’s the email address I used (still haven’t had a response).Todds_right_hook said:
I received an email on the same day as my phone call to the club. I found the club very helpful and understanding, the problem lies with the stewards not being suitably briefed and also not caringDaveMehmet said:
This is what concerns me as well. Can’t trust the stewards to understand that I need to keep mine with me so bag drop is not an option.Todds_right_hook said:I need a bag for medical reasons, I contacted the club in advance and they sent me a letter confirming exemption
what could go wrong………
the steward wouldn’t let me in despite the letter. A colleague got involved but still refused access. I asked them to go get a supervisor which they did, I took the opportunity and entered the ground
very poor preparation and training
It makes me think is it worth it and should I watch he game on sky insteadI’ve requested an exemption but not heard anything back yet.Told them I was going to Pompey but I’ve held off buying a ticket until I get confirmation. If I don’t hear back today I’ll make alternative arrangements for the day.
safetyteam@cafc.co.uk3 -
Off the pitch we are still miles away from where we should be.DaveMehmet said:
Despite sending a chaser email, not heard anything back. Have made alternative arrangements for Saturday now so they can go and fuck themselves.DaveMehmet said:
Cheers, that’s the email address I used (still haven’t had a response).Todds_right_hook said:
I received an email on the same day as my phone call to the club. I found the club very helpful and understanding, the problem lies with the stewards not being suitably briefed and also not caringDaveMehmet said:
This is what concerns me as well. Can’t trust the stewards to understand that I need to keep mine with me so bag drop is not an option.Todds_right_hook said:I need a bag for medical reasons, I contacted the club in advance and they sent me a letter confirming exemption
what could go wrong………
the steward wouldn’t let me in despite the letter. A colleague got involved but still refused access. I asked them to go get a supervisor which they did, I took the opportunity and entered the ground
very poor preparation and training
It makes me think is it worth it and should I watch he game on sky insteadI’ve requested an exemption but not heard anything back yet.Told them I was going to Pompey but I’ve held off buying a ticket until I get confirmation. If I don’t hear back today I’ll make alternative arrangements for the day.
safetyteam@cafc.co.uk14 -
Not everyone lives a short distance from the ground, or comes by car where you can leave stuff there. People may want food/drink for the journey, something to read etc, or indeed might be going somewhere else beforehand or afterwards.cblock said:How many fans would actually need to bring a bag with them for a weekend daytime kickoff, the percentage would surely
be low even allowing for medication needs etc, I do understand that evening games with work lap tops is obviously a concern.11 -
A4 is an invented arbitrary size limit.If it were truly a critical size we’d impose it on the trains and buses too.They only need to say no oversized bags and all are subject to a search.9
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killerandflash said:
Not everyone lives a short distance from the ground, or comes by car where you can leave stuff there. People may want food/drink for the journey, something to read etc, or indeed might be going somewhere else beforehand or afterwards.cblock said:How many fans would actually need to bring a bag with them for a weekend daytime kickoff, the percentage would surely
be low even allowing for medication needs etc, I do understand that evening games with work lap tops is obviously a concern.
But this is what our highly skilled and efficient staff are there for to help you with cheap food and drink inside the ground
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I hope that the club will see the error of their ways and drop this absolutely ridiculous policy very quickly.
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This is broadly where I'm at, midweek will always be straight from work, straight from work means a bag (not a laptop bag), we have expensive equipment and company policy is they are not allowed to be left at cloakrooms (which I count the same as bag drop).benjest1989 said:turned up at the game from work and went into crossbars with my bag which contained my laptop only. bag searched all fine.
Tried to go in the turnstile and was told to go to the bag drop (I was completely unaware of this new policy)
went to the bag drop with around 10 other people in the same situation (7:15pm ish)
queued for bag drop and was told this would be £5 - and they were dumping the bags behind a desk in the crossbars reception (not really secure)
When I questioned this the steward said 'I agree this is a stupid policy' and they couldn't tell me when and how this was communicated
I didn't pay the £5 and just walked in through a different turnstile
I will be emailing a formal complaint about the lack of notice and around the process. If it was £5 to put your bag in a secure locker then maybe I would be comfortable with this, but my work laptop, just left behind a desk
Judging by the left behind a table just about says it all. I'm luckier in that I live a 35-40 minute drive away, but there's no way generally I'm getting home from the city, straight back out again and to the ground and in before half time. Instead I could as usual be from Cannon Street to the turnstiles in under 35 minutes.........but not with a bag.
So whilst it may seem ridiculous, it does pretty much mean I wont attend any midweek games.7 -
I 'm hoping everyone who has the same/similar opinions to yourself will contact the club &/or complete the post matchday survey emailed out, to advise how said policy may well affect their attendance.Rob7Lee said:
This is broadly where I'm at, midweek will always be straight from work, straight from work means a bag (not a laptop bag), we have expensive equipment and company policy is they are not allowed to be left at cloakrooms (which I count the same as bag drop).benjest1989 said:turned up at the game from work and went into crossbars with my bag which contained my laptop only. bag searched all fine.
Tried to go in the turnstile and was told to go to the bag drop (I was completely unaware of this new policy)
went to the bag drop with around 10 other people in the same situation (7:15pm ish)
queued for bag drop and was told this would be £5 - and they were dumping the bags behind a desk in the crossbars reception (not really secure)
When I questioned this the steward said 'I agree this is a stupid policy' and they couldn't tell me when and how this was communicated
I didn't pay the £5 and just walked in through a different turnstile
I will be emailing a formal complaint about the lack of notice and around the process. If it was £5 to put your bag in a secure locker then maybe I would be comfortable with this, but my work laptop, just left behind a desk
Judging by the left behind a table just about says it all. I'm luckier in that I live a 35-40 minute drive away, but there's no way generally I'm getting home from the city, straight back out again and to the ground and in before half time. Instead I could as usual be from Cannon Street to the turnstiles in under 35 minutes.........but not with a bag.
So whilst it may seem ridiculous, it does pretty much mean I wont attend any midweek games.
SOMEONE has to listen & rethink this issue as a whole before this really does get ridiculous.2 -
when was the post match survey emailed out? never seen one - i've contacted the club about a few things over the years by email having hunted around the club website and trying to guess what email address to use - never had a response - waste of timeFanny Fanackapan said:
I 'm hoping everyone who has the same/similar opinions to yourself will contact the club &/or complete the post matchday survey emailed out, to advise how said policy may well affect their attendance.Rob7Lee said:
This is broadly where I'm at, midweek will always be straight from work, straight from work means a bag (not a laptop bag), we have expensive equipment and company policy is they are not allowed to be left at cloakrooms (which I count the same as bag drop).benjest1989 said:turned up at the game from work and went into crossbars with my bag which contained my laptop only. bag searched all fine.
Tried to go in the turnstile and was told to go to the bag drop (I was completely unaware of this new policy)
went to the bag drop with around 10 other people in the same situation (7:15pm ish)
queued for bag drop and was told this would be £5 - and they were dumping the bags behind a desk in the crossbars reception (not really secure)
When I questioned this the steward said 'I agree this is a stupid policy' and they couldn't tell me when and how this was communicated
I didn't pay the £5 and just walked in through a different turnstile
I will be emailing a formal complaint about the lack of notice and around the process. If it was £5 to put your bag in a secure locker then maybe I would be comfortable with this, but my work laptop, just left behind a desk
Judging by the left behind a table just about says it all. I'm luckier in that I live a 35-40 minute drive away, but there's no way generally I'm getting home from the city, straight back out again and to the ground and in before half time. Instead I could as usual be from Cannon Street to the turnstiles in under 35 minutes.........but not with a bag.
So whilst it may seem ridiculous, it does pretty much mean I wont attend any midweek games.
SOMEONE has to listen & rethink this issue as a whole before this really does get ridiculous.1 -
Do they ask at baggage drop off what the contents of your bag are?. If they don't itemise the contents whats then to prevent someone claiming that their non-existing Laptop has been nicked and making a claim against the club.6
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Changes the calculation around a season ticket next season as well though doesn't it. If you're already missing every midweek game and youre on holiday for another 2 then are you breaking even on your season ticket? Maybe by 1 or 2 games. So might go game by game. Which at those prices inevitably means attending fewer games and people less engages with the club.Rob7Lee said:
This is broadly where I'm at, midweek will always be straight from work, straight from work means a bag (not a laptop bag), we have expensive equipment and company policy is they are not allowed to be left at cloakrooms (which I count the same as bag drop).benjest1989 said:turned up at the game from work and went into crossbars with my bag which contained my laptop only. bag searched all fine.
Tried to go in the turnstile and was told to go to the bag drop (I was completely unaware of this new policy)
went to the bag drop with around 10 other people in the same situation (7:15pm ish)
queued for bag drop and was told this would be £5 - and they were dumping the bags behind a desk in the crossbars reception (not really secure)
When I questioned this the steward said 'I agree this is a stupid policy' and they couldn't tell me when and how this was communicated
I didn't pay the £5 and just walked in through a different turnstile
I will be emailing a formal complaint about the lack of notice and around the process. If it was £5 to put your bag in a secure locker then maybe I would be comfortable with this, but my work laptop, just left behind a desk
Judging by the left behind a table just about says it all. I'm luckier in that I live a 35-40 minute drive away, but there's no way generally I'm getting home from the city, straight back out again and to the ground and in before half time. Instead I could as usual be from Cannon Street to the turnstiles in under 35 minutes.........but not with a bag.
So whilst it may seem ridiculous, it does pretty much mean I wont attend any midweek games.9 -
I was sent one this morning, you only get them from time to timeDOUCHER said:
when was the post match survey emailed out? never seen one - i've contacted the club about a few things over the years by email having hunted around the club website and trying to guess what email address to use - never had a response - waste of timeFanny Fanackapan said:
I 'm hoping everyone who has the same/similar opinions to yourself will contact the club &/or complete the post matchday survey emailed out, to advise how said policy may well affect their attendance.Rob7Lee said:
This is broadly where I'm at, midweek will always be straight from work, straight from work means a bag (not a laptop bag), we have expensive equipment and company policy is they are not allowed to be left at cloakrooms (which I count the same as bag drop).benjest1989 said:turned up at the game from work and went into crossbars with my bag which contained my laptop only. bag searched all fine.
Tried to go in the turnstile and was told to go to the bag drop (I was completely unaware of this new policy)
went to the bag drop with around 10 other people in the same situation (7:15pm ish)
queued for bag drop and was told this would be £5 - and they were dumping the bags behind a desk in the crossbars reception (not really secure)
When I questioned this the steward said 'I agree this is a stupid policy' and they couldn't tell me when and how this was communicated
I didn't pay the £5 and just walked in through a different turnstile
I will be emailing a formal complaint about the lack of notice and around the process. If it was £5 to put your bag in a secure locker then maybe I would be comfortable with this, but my work laptop, just left behind a desk
Judging by the left behind a table just about says it all. I'm luckier in that I live a 35-40 minute drive away, but there's no way generally I'm getting home from the city, straight back out again and to the ground and in before half time. Instead I could as usual be from Cannon Street to the turnstiles in under 35 minutes.........but not with a bag.
So whilst it may seem ridiculous, it does pretty much mean I wont attend any midweek games.
SOMEONE has to listen & rethink this issue as a whole before this really does get ridiculous.
Perfect timing as it happened, to comment on this issue.1 -
Just filled out the survey recommending they reverse this policy forthwith.
The admission price plus the bag policy appears to reveal that the club are on a mission to drive down the support as fast as possible.7 -
gringo said:Do they ask at baggage drop off what the contents of your bag are?. If they don't itemise the contents whats then to prevent someone claiming that their non-existing Laptop has been nicked and making a claim against the club.
That's a bloody good point.
3
