FA Customer Charter Report 2000-01

Introduction
The Football Association is committed to developing an open, accountable and responsive relationship with supporters and the general public, which will play a key role helping us to achieve our vision of using the power of football to build a better future.

Great progress has been made over the past year in providing fans with the opportunity to comment on FA activities and issues across football as a whole.

This paper reviews the progress made on meeting the commitments made by The Football Association in its joint submission- with the FA Premier League and Football League- to the Government Football Task Force on Commercial Issues.

We have developed a Code of Practice covering three key areas: establishing of a Customer Relations Unit, implementation of a Customer Charter, and reporting back on progress in adopting/promoting the first three Football Task Force reports.

This report, covering these three areas, forms a key part of our commitments.

Customer Relations Unit
The FA Customer Relations Unit was established in June 2000 with staff dedicated for the first time to providing efficient and effective responses to enquiries both on customer issues and of a general nature, and to developing a proactive relationship with supporters.

The Unit handles two forms of enquiry: those concerned with Commercial Issues as defined in the Customer Charter, which are the primary concern of this report; and more general issues which reflect The FA's role as the governing body of the game and first port of call for information about any aspect of football.

The aims of the Customer Relations Unit were established as:

To provide a professional and approachable service to the thousands of fans and members of the general public who contact us with queries, views and complaints
To work with all divisions within The FA to ensure that a high level of customer service is being offered, and that fans' views are being reflected back into the organisation
To add value to customer contact with The FA by promoting the services we offer and communicating our vision.
To develop new ways of communicating with fans, including innovative use of our web-site.

The role of the Customer Relations Unit developed during the course of the year, with up to 2000 general enquiries a day being handled by telephone, e-mail and letter at the busiest times.

The volume of enquiries handled by the Unit increased dramatically during the course of the year, influenced by two main factors:  changes to ticketing policies for England matches following the closure of Wembley and the associated impact on the England Members Club; and the increasing use of e-mail as a means of communication for football fans.

The Unit has contributed significantly to a more open and responsive approach now provided by The FA. In 2001/2, the Unit can develop the added-value elements of its operation and contribute significantly to the changing image of The FA

Customer Charter
The FA Customer Charter was published at the start of the 2000/2001 season, and publicised through the F.A. web-site and programmes at England and other FA organised matches. It sets out the standards of service customers purchasing tickets for FA organised matches and merchandise can expect.

The Charter has been amended as appropriate during the course of the season to take account of changes in circumstances: the closure of Wembley Stadium, for example. The current edition of the Charter is attached.

The main policy areas covered in the Charter, and a summary of the customer contact received in relation to each, are detailed below:

Staff Conduct
The staff in the Customer Relations Unit perform a difficult role, often under great pressure when handling enquiries from passionate football supporters. During the course of the season, the changes to the England Members Club created additional pressure, but the staff have won widespread praise, both internally and externally, for their patient and informative approach.

Only one direct complaint about staff conduct was received, which was concerned more with the information provided to the customer rather than the attitude of the staff member. This was investigated and dealt with by the Head of Customer Relations.

Stakeholder Consultation
During the season, four consultation meetings with the main football supporters organisations were held, regular dialogue with officers of the organisations maintained, and a new forum for discussions with the National Association of Disabled supporters initiated.

A major programme of consumer research was developed, using both qualitative (focus groups) and quantitative (surveys and polls) methods to gain an understanding of stakeholder issues.

The process of re-launching the England Members Club also involved a major research programme. This included a postal survey of all 32,000 existing members, focus groups, face-to-face interviews, and supporter forums.

Ticketing
With the closure of Wembley Stadium following the England v Germany match in October 2000, the ticketing policies for FA-organised matches have undergone a fundamental re-organisation, to reflect new circumstances. With the move to smaller stadia, and major changes to the way in which members of the England Members Club accessed tickets, significant levels of customer contact were generated.

The following table details the formal complaints received concerning the areas covered in the ticketing section of the Customer Charter:

Community Activity
The Football Association, as the governing body of the game, runs a comprehensive range of development activities, with the National Game Division, established during the course of the last year, developing a major programme of community-related activities.

For the purposes of the Customer Charter, the focus of community activities is taken to be around FA-organised games.

At each England senior international, a family enclosure is operated as the focus for community activities. A publication for children, the 3 Lions Funzine, is produced for each game and distributed to children attending the match, and local schools and community organisations. 

Significant community activities were developed during the course of the year around England matches below senior level (under 21s, youth and women’s matches). This involved the distribution of free tickets, and linking in with schools and other organisations through football development activities.

The First Three Task Force Reports
The following sections provide an assessment of progress made by the FA in adopting/promoting the first three Football Task Force reports, recognising that in many cases, circumstances have changed within the game. Where specific recommendations were made affecting The FA, these have been reflected directly.

Eliminating Racism From Football
The first Task Force report focused on measures to tackle racism in the game at all levels. The Football Association has been at the forefront of the Let's Kick Racism Out of Football Campaign, and significant progress has been made in combating abuse and intimidation over recent years.

However, it is quite clear that the work of the campaign must continue and broaden into every area of the game, and we are therefore continuing our significant support- both financial and practical - of the Kick It Out organisation, and implementing The FA's own initiatives where appropriate.

Our first response to a specific recommendation was to issue guidance to referees that "racist remarks constitute a dismissal offence in accord with Law 12- the use of offensive, insulting or abusive language- and must be punished accordingly."

FA Rules were also amended in 1998/99 to include a specific definition of discrimination as part of Rule 26a x) covering Misconduct. In 2000/01, a revising of  FA Rules enshrined Discrimination in all its forms as a key element of the Rules concerning Conduct, as follows:

Rule E.3: a Participant shall not carry out any act which is discriminatory by reason of ethnic origin, colour, race, nationality, religion, sex, sexual orientation or disability.

In addition, changes to the Guidance for Punishments for Disciplinary Commissions were introduced, outlining measures for dealing with cases where discrimination is proved: "the discrimination offence should be seen as serious, with double the penalty being the minimum for the discrimination charge being proved."

The FA's anti-discrimination policy was circulated widely within the game in 1998/99. We had an overwhelmingly favourable response from affiliated organisations, including County Football Associations (CFAs), all of which have adopted their own policies. From the start of the 1999/2000 season, every CFA has included an Equal Opportunities Statement in its Handbook, which gives a public commitment to kicking racism out of football.

We are also now involved in detailed work with CFAs to ensure that measures to combat racism are implemented at every level.  Successful projects where CFAs are closely involved with multi-agency initiatives involving organisations such as Local Authorities, professional clubs and community groups, are already underway in areas such as West Yorkshire, Sheffield, Leicester, Middlesex and London.  We are now working on plans to spread the good practice gained throughout the Counties, which will include advice and training for disciplinary commissions. We are in discussions with Sporting Equals about how its newly developed racial equality standards might be developed within football.

At the national level, the establishing of the new National Game Division to develop grassroots football, has provided a structure in which equity issues can be taken forward at grassroots level, and a new process co-ordinating these issues across The FA divisions is now being developed. 

Other areas in which we are making progress include the introduction of equal opportunities measures into our coaching system, with an equity module introduced for Junior Team Managers courses, and an equity training programme implemented for all coach educators.

Senior Managers have also undertaken equity training and a programme is being developed to cascade training throughout the organisation.

The FA is also actively exploring ways of promoting development paths for promising young Asian footballers into the professional game. During 2000/01, 13 projects around the country received support both in financial terms, and with the active involvement of our football development staff.  Training and development programmes for Academy and Centre of Excellence staff are also on-going in this important area.

Improving Facilities For Disabled Supporters
The role played by The Football Association in contributing to the improvements in facilities for disabled supporters has been enhanced in the past year, with the FA Customer Relations Unit taking responsibility for consultation arrangements. A new consultative forum has been established; regular meetings now take place with disabled supporters, chaired by The FA, involving the FA Premier League, Football League, Football Conference, Football Foundation, Football Licensing Authority, and relevant Government departments.

The forum has played a valuable role in bringing the key parties together and providing a positive agenda for taking forward the wide range of issues, including all those covered in the Task Force Report.

We have taken a proactive approach to handling disabled issues at FA-organised matches during the course of the year. A new standardised approach to ticket pricing for disabled supporters at FA-organised matches has been agreed, following consultation with the National Association of Disabled Supporters.

A number of the Task Force recommendations relate specifically to the planning for the new National Stadium.

The consultation arrangements put in place with disabled supporters as part of the planning process for the new stadium are now being seen as setting the benchmark for other projects. Particular support has been received from the National Association of Disabled Supporters over seating design, layout and sightlines.

The current proposals for disabled seating at the new stadium significantly exceed the minimum 290 wheelchair spaces recommended in the task Force report. The designs also encompass other recommendations, including improved lighting and signage, wheelchair access to catering and hospitality facilities and enhanced parking arrangements.

Investing in the community
The main focus in this report is on the relationships between football clubs and communities, but The Football Association's community-related activities do form a major part of football provision at the grassroots in this country.

The FA National Game Division provides a focus for these activities, based around the strategic objective of leading the development of English football at grassroots level, providing the framework and facilities to achieve the highest participation in the world.

Specific areas covered by the Investing in the Community report where significant developments in FA policy have taken place include:

Developing Local Football Partnerships: The FA is taking the lead on establishing co-ordinating groups at the County level, bringing together the different providers of services to football with the aim of  overseeing and coordinating the planning, development, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of football development across the county.

Clubs in crisis  - the new FA Financial Advisory Unit (see separate report) is providing assistance to clubs, with the intention of improving financial practices throughout the game.

Encouraging supporter involvement: The FA has been an active supporter of the development of Supporters Direct, the Government-funded organisation which is providing assistance to supporters trusts. We are represented on the Consultative Group of this organisation, and have contributed to publications and seminars.

Future Trends
The first year of operation of the FA Customer Relations Unit, and the Customer charter, have seen a step change in our ability to handle enquires and comments from the public in an efficient manner, and  has contributed significantly to our image as an open and responsive organisation.

The dominant themes in terms of customer issues being raised with us have been based around ticketing and membership matters, which reflects a necessary period of change. The move away from Wembley, the need to develop new policies to reflect this, and the re-structuring of the England Members Club all generated significant levels of customer contact.

In the coming year, with new ticketing and allocation policies and the revised supporters club arrangements now in place, it is anticipated that a lower level of complaints will be received on these issues.

This will allow us to focus on developing amore proactive relationship with supporters and the general public, through improving feedback mechanisms, developing our research programme, initiating new forms of communication with fans and contributing to The FA's overall communication strategy.