No Idle Talk

THE SUPPORTERS FORUM

The Supporters Forum was set up by Hearts at the start of the 2000/2001 season. We ran an article in issue 48 which explains how the forum is made up and explains the reasons why the Federation of Hearts Supporters Clubs didn't join the forum. If you would like to read this background click here

The Hearts Supporters Forum
          PO Box 17174
          EDINBURGH WEST
          EH11 2ZY

Next Forum meeting is to be on tbd (depending on availability of Gorgie suite). Guest speaker to be announced

AGM WAS HELD IN AUGUST 2002.

Some of the old committee stepped down and others were not re-elected. Minutes will be posted here when available.

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MINUTES OF THE COMMITTEE MEETING
HELD AT TYNECASTLE ON 7TH FEBRUARY, 2002
ATTENDANCE

Present were Geoff Kilpatrick, Alex Knight, Drew Oswald, Alex Penman, Fiona Walker, Peter Wilson & Jim Wyllie. Apologies were tendered on behalf of Stuart Crosbie and Ali Hibberd.

APPROVAL OF MINUTES OF PREVIOUS MEETING

The Minutes of the Committee Meeting held on 10th January, 2002, had been circulated and were approved as a true record.

MATTERS ARISING THEREFROM AND REPORTS

(a) Crowd Behaviour, Stewarding, etc.

Nel Whiting and Dave Forsyth, representing Edinburgh & Lothian Racial Equality Council were in attendance at this point of the Meeting. The former presented an interesting paper entitled "Anti Racism in Football Campaign" and detailed various steps taken by the Edinburgh Clubs to try and reduce racism. Thereafter a general discussion ensued. The majority of the Committee were agreed that any obvious racism was generally confined to a small minority of the Hearts support who were also likely to be the same persons who were causing sectarian problems. The ELREC representatives were unable to give many specific details of actual racial incidents and believed that the main problem was the perception of ethnic minorities that many football supporters were likely to be racist. The Committee were agreed that any positive efforts to encourage persons from ethnic minorities to attend football games was worthy of support.

The Chairman thanked Nel and David for their assistance and attendance.

The Committee briefly discussed a draft Policy on Abuse, Racism & Sectarianism

which it was agreed should be discussed with representatives of the Board at the Meeting due to be held on 13th February, 2002. Thereafter it was hoped to present the draft Policy to the Open Meeting on 27th February for possible addition or amendment and approval.

(b) communication

Geoff Kilpatrick reported that he had been in touch with Graham Denholm of Hearts with a view to updating our section on the official Hearts website. It was generally agreed that the Forum's current website was principally used only as an E mail postbox. It was therefore decided that Geoff Kilpatrick, Jim Wyllie and his son, Alan, who had a sound knowledge of computers, should meet to discuss the establishment of a proper website dedicated to the Forum.

It was agreed to utilise loudspeaker announcements at home games to advertise Open Meetings. The question of suggestion boxes within the ground was raised but the idea failed to receive any support.

(b) Catering

Alex Penman had written again to the Club regarding the continuing high costs of catering items. A reply had been received from Chris Robinson indicating that he was now dealing with such matters and it was, therefore, agreed to raise the subject of catering at the forthcoming meeting with the Board.

(c) Youth Academy

Permission had been granted for the project and the matter was proceeding satisfactorily.

(d) Proposed New Stadium

Members believed that this matter was still ongoing and agreed to seek to clarify the current position at the forthcoming meeting with the Board.

(e) Merchandising

The Club had just announced a new major sponsorship deal with Reebok and All:sports. Reebok would manufacture Club strips etc while the goods would be sold through All:sports chain of shops in addition to the Hearts Superstore. The latter firm have 23 outlets in Scotland and a large number down South.

MEETING WITH HEARTS BOARD ON 13TH FEBRUARY, 2002

The Secretary reported that this Meeting had been arranged for 7 p.m. on Wednesday, 13th February, 2002, at Tynecastle. It was believed that the Club would be represented by Chris Robinson, Stuart Fraser, Brian Duffin and Colin Sked.

It was agreed that discussion subjects should be as per the listed headings above with the exception of Item (d). An additional subject the Committee wished to raise was ticket/pricing policy with particular reference to next season's prices.

OPEN MEETING ON 27TH FEBRUARY, 2002

Arrangements for the Open Meeting on 27th February were discussed. As Craig Levein was scheduled to be the Guest Speaker it was hoped that this would encourage an improved attendance.

JOINT MEETINGS

The Secretary had written to the the Secretary of the Federation of Hearts Supporters Clubs outlining the Committees' views on possible Joint Meetings when there were agreed matters of common interest. A reply had subsequently been received and, in essence, both organisations had agreed to meet and discuss matters when, and if, such a common interest arose.

The next committee meeting will be held at Tynecastle on Thursday, 7th March, 2002, commencing at 7 p.m.

CLOSURE

The Chairman closed the Meeting at 9.25 p.m.

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HEARTS FANS FORUM - UPDATE

The Forum has been involved in a number of issues in the last couple of months. These issues were determined by fans at the AGM in August, and the committee are pursuing these with the club on behalf of fans.

Club Merchandising

Alex Knight reported comprehensively on a recent meeting he had held with Clare Sargent, the Superstore Manager, to discuss merchandising. It was thought that the adopting of a policy of only selling through the superstore was proving satisfactory but there could not be a true comparison till a full year had elapsed. There had been an emphasis placed on the selling of good quality products. A good example of this being the Hearts' tops which were now not replicas but, indeed, identical to the players' jerseys. The idea of taking up a short term lease on other premises (e.g. at the festive period) had been looked at, but rental and related costs so far obtained had been prohibitive. Clare had indicated that she was always prepared to look at suggestions for new stock but costs and profit margins had to be uppermost.

Catering at Tynecastle

Alex Penman gave a report on discussions he'd had with Graeme Pacitti, Hearts Conference and Banqueting Manager and on related correspondence with the caterers, Sodexho Prestige. It was explained that the firm had a 10 year contract with Hearts which had been running for about 5 years. It was also made clear that overheads were considerable in relation to the limited number of sale hours on match days and a strict comparison with any full time baker was unfair. The firm were, however, aware of concerns about high costs and were looking at monthly special offers. While most members of the Committee still considered the general costs of items too high, it was agreed to monitor the position for another month or two before making any further approaches.

Forum Communication with Fans

I presented a report to the committee on this issue. A by-product of this report to the committee is this article in the fanzine.

Bigotry & Racism at Tynecastle

The committee invited Tom Purdie, Hearts' security officer, and John McLean of Touchline Event Management Ltd. to the November committee meeting. After a discussion, Tom agreed to be the guest speaker at the Forum open meeting on November 22, details of which are in a separate article.

Board Meeting

The Forum met with the board on 15 November 2001 to discuss a number of vital issues with the club such as the Youth Academy, the club's financial situation and the new stadium plans. The committee reported this back to the fans - details of which are again shown in a separate article.

Next Forum Meeting

The next Forum Meeting will take place on Wednesday February 27, at 7.15pm in the Gorgie Suite. The highlight of the meeting will be a Question & Answer session with Craig Levein so if you want to know why we have 11 men in the box when defending a corner, this is your opportunity to ask the man himself. Please come along.

On behalf of the Committee

Geoff Kilpatrick

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HEART FANS' FORUM

SUMMARY OF THE FORUM MEETING

HELD AT TYNECASTLE

ON 22ND NOVEMBER, 2001

ATTENDANCE & CHAIRMAN'S WELCOME

Approximately 50 fans attended the Meeting despite the clash with yet another Scottish TV live European fixture. An apology was received from Committee Member, Stuart Crosbie, who was in hospital for an operation.

Peter Wilson welcomed everyone, introduced the new Committee and outlined the Agenda for the evening.

SUMMARY OF THE MEETING ON 24TH MAY, 2001

Copies of the Summary had been circulated. There was no disagreement with the contents and follow up matters therein were covered elsewhere in the Agenda.

REPORTS

MEETING WITH THE HEARTS BOARD ON 15TH NOVEMBER, 2001.

Eight members of the Committee had met with representatives of the Club at Tynecastle on 15th November, 2001. Representing the Club were the Chairman, Doug Smith, Chief Executive, Chris Robinson, Financial Director, Stuart Fraser, and Colin Sked, Customer Services Manager. The following items were the main subjects discussed.

Youth Academy

Peter Wilson reported that satisfactory progress was being made in respect of the establishment and construction of the Youth Academy at Riccarton. It was expected that the contract for the buildings would shortly be awarded and that construction would begin early in 2002 with an anticipated completion in February, 2003. Some ground work had already been done and the under 18's were already playing games at Heriot Watt Campus and it was envisaged that Hearts under 21's might also play some of their games there in the future. There would be six football pitches at the complex.

The Academy was a joint project between Heriot Watt University and Hearts which would cost £6 million. The Club's share being £3.5 million (including grants). Our contribution to be switched to a 25 year mortgage. The University would retain ownership of the land and buildings while Hearts had agreed to a 25 years' Lease. When the project was finished all Hearts playing staff and coaches would train and generally work from there.

Some reservations were expressed by fans at the Open Meeting about the retention of ownership by Heriot Watt and the acceptance of a 25 year lease. It was, however, appreciated that the costs of purchasing such land in the Edinburgh area by the Club would have been costly. Amongst the fans and several members of the Committee there appeared to be a genuine belief that £4 million of the investment money from the Scottish Media Group had been "ring fenced" for use in connection with the Academy but, although this had been put to the Board at the Meeting on the 15th, they had stated that this view was incorrect.

Despite these points of contention, the fans were pleased that the project was now seen to be making progress.

Proposed New Stadium

Hearts bid to build a new stadium in time for the possible European Tournament in 2008 had not been accepted by the Scottish Football Association. The view of the Board was that they still intended to proceed with the project at Braehead Quarry if planning permission for it and other related developments was eventually given for this green belt site. It was now believed that UEFA regulations on pitch sizes and other facilities would not be fully implemented until 2010. It was certainly the case that any such project would be a long time in the planning stage and, thereafter, would take some years to construct.

While the Committee and some fans had serious doubts about the financial implications of the scheme, there was a majority view that a new stadium was desirable. In this respect several fans asked that further clarification be sought from the Board regarding a possible fall-back position should the proposed project fail to get planning approval.

Club Finances

Committee Member, Alex Penman, using a flip-chart presented a "layman's" guide to the fans in respect of the Club's current financial position. The Club had recently transferred £6 million of their overdraft into a 10 year long term loan. At 31st July, 2001, Heart of Midlothian plc had an adjusted net debt of £6.4 million but this could be considerably increased if SMG decided not to convert their Loan Stock of £4.75 million before 2003. Virtually all U.K. Football Clubs shares had suffered big falls and they had considerable debts e.g. Celtic had an accumulated debt at 2000-2001 of £29.6 million and their shares had fallen by 44% in the past 6 months. Hearts shares had fallen by 8.33% in the same period. The Board representatives believed that Hearts financial position would improve in the coming year, particularly after the expiry of several expensive player contracts at the end of the current season, which would assist with the Club's intentions to considerably reduce staff costs. The financial position would also be ameliorated by the monies received from the sale of Colin Cameron and an additional amount received in respect of the earlier sale of Gary Naysmith.

Doug Smith was questioned by the Committee on the bid and proposed investment made in the summer by the former Club Chairman, Leslie Deans and his associates. The Chairman explained that the Board would not recommend the acceptance of the bid to the shareholders. It was the Board's view that the Deans group were trying to gain control of the Club without offering to buy all of the Club's shares. Under Stock Exchange rules once an individual or group own more than 30% of a plc, they are required to make an offer to buy all of a company's shares. This offer had not been made in respect of the Deans bid.

Several fans expressed their unease about the Club's financial position and the monetary policies which were being adopted by the Board. Peter Wilson several times made it clear that the Committee were merely communicating and outlining to the fans the Club's financial position and related explanations from the Board. It was not necessarily the case that the Committee agreed with all,or indeed any, of the explanations or were content with the financial position of the Club.

MISCELLANEOUS REPORTS

Catering

Alex Penman reported on correspondence he had received from Sodexho Prestige, the Catering Company, and discussions with Graeme Pacitti, Hearts Conference and Banqueting Manager. It was explained that the firm had a 10 years contract with the Club which had been ongoing for about 5 years. They had stated that the overheads were considerable in relation to the limited number of hours involved on match days and that a strict comparison with any full time baker was unfair. The firm, however, were aware of the fans' concern at high costs of items and were looking at special offers. The Committee had agreed to monitor the position for another month or so before making any further approaches. It was suggested from the audience that perhaps any surplus pies etc left at the end of a home match could be sold to fans on departure at a single servery for a knock down price. It was agreed to examine this suggestion although there might well be stewarding problems when the mass of fans was leaving the stadium.

Merchandising

Alex Knight reported on a meeting he had with Clare Sargent, the Superstore Manager, to discuss merchandising. It was believed that adopting of a policy of only selling through the Superstore was proving satisfactory but there could not be a true comparison until the end of the season. Emphasis had always been placed on selling good quality products. An example being Hearts tops which were not replicas but were identical to those worn by the players. The idea of taking up a short term lease on other premises (e.g. at the festive period) had been examined but rental and related costs so far obtained had been prohibitive. Alex emphasised that Clare was willing to discuss and examine new ideas from the fans at any time.

Communication

Geoff Kilpatrick had drawn up a paper on communication which the Committee were currently examining with a view to further improving communication between the fans and the Forum and vice-versa. Any ideas on the subject from the fans would be most welcome.

COMPETENT BUSINESS

It was suggested that Catering and possibly Bar facilities would be welcome at future Open Meetings. This suggestion to be take up with the Club.

A short discussion then took place on possible future speakers for Open Meetings.

Bill McCaskie indicated that he had a fund raising proposal which he wished to raise later with the Committee.

Some fans felt that there was insufficient advertising about under 21's matches and that these would be better attended if the time, date and location were made more widely known.

ADDRESS BY TOM PURDIE

Tom Purdie, Hearts Safety and Security Adviser, gave a most informative and interesting address in respect of his work with the Club. Fans were most interested in the variety of work and liaison that went on behind the scenes in respect of troublemakers. Tom updated the fans on the apparently pre-arranged trouble in the North Enclosure at the Celtic match and subsequent problems thereafter in the Haymarket area. He gave details of several steps that had been taken to deal with the offenders and indicated that Police investigations were still ongoing. Several fans praised the Police and stewards actions at the game. In particular the removal of sectarian flags and banners at the turnstiles had been most effective.

Peter Wilson thanked Tom for his address and the able way he had dealt with various questions on security and stewarding. He could rest assured that he had the fans support in dealing with troublemakers.

DATE OF NEXT FORUM MEETING & CLOSURE

The next Forum Meeting would provisionally be held towards the end of February. It was hoped that Craig Levein would be able to attend as the guest speaker. The Chairman closed the Meeting shortly after 9 p.m.

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VIEWS FROM CRAIG YOUNG (NIT EDITOR) ON THE FANS FORUM MEETING in the
GORGIE SUITE 22nd November 2001

Myself and 43 other hardy souls ditched the opportunity to watch the FOD on the telly and braved the freezing temperatures to spend a very pleasant evening at the latest Fans Forum meeting in the Gorgie suite.

We were welcomed by Peter Wilson (chairman) who introduced us to the committee before presenting us with 6 reports which the committee had been tasked with finding out information. Some of the information below is widely known, so I'll be brief.

YOUTH ACADEMY

In a nutshell, it will be up and running by January 2003 with 6 pitches at Riccarton. The Under 18's will play there and maybe the Under 21's. The overall cost will be £6 million, Hearts share of that is £3.5 million and the Heriot Watt share is £2.5 million. Our part will be funded by way of a 25 year mortgage. This is the bit that saves us the bother of using the (alleged) £4 million which was (allegedly) ring-fenced. We pay a monthly mortgage and Hearts use the SMG money to oversee the debt. Easy.

Interesting note : At the end of the 25 years who owns the facility? The answer is not Hearts! Heriot Watt will own is and pay maintenance costs but at the end of the day we will not have this asset to show on the balance sheet.

NEW STADIUM

Everyone knows that it's to be at Braehead quarry and it will be built at no cost to Hearts. In addition there will be no taxpayers money used either (unlike our city neighbours). The word is that Tynecastle would be worth around £10 million in 2006.

Interesting note : The year 2010 is being banded about as being the year when it is crucial Hearts have somewhere else to play. Clearly 2008 (Euro Championship) is a non starter for us, so the FIFA rules about pitch sizes and various others are the reasons being given for the move.

(Valid) questions were asked from the floor&ldots;..

Is there an alternative, or a fall back position if the Braehead option falls through. Answer is apparently "no".

Two other questions worthy of the asking&ldots;

- Who would pay £10 million for Tynecastle?

- Is there really enough interest from around the place from business to ensure that if the project went ahead, Hearts would really pay nothing?

CLUB FINANCES

This information was made available at the agm but here goes anyway. From the balance sheet the picture (up to the 31st July) is as follows

Creditors who we have to pay back within 1 year £10,245 m

Creditors who we have to pay back in more than a year £ 7,721 m

Total Debt £17,966 m

Hold on to your seat folks, it's not that bad. From the £17m we have to take away

Football trust money (we only pay that back if we stop playing football)£1,774 m

500 club money                                                              £ 311 k
Season ticket money (never paid any back yet)                £2,150 m
Debtors (yes, some people do owe Hearts money)          £2,563 m
                                                                Total debt    £11,168 m

However, there is a debt that Hearts owe to SMG is they decide to ask for their money back in 2006. Hearts have chosen to count this money in the "won't get paid back" column so

SMG loan debt £4,754 m

Means total Hearts debt £6,414 m

That's the deal. Of course the money we got from the sale of Mickey and the extra we got for Naysmith plus whatever wage savings we have made has to come off that since July 2001.

Interesting point : The loan stock is currently costing Hearts £4,754 m. In each subsequent year between now and 2006, this amount will increase due to interest (at least that was the opinion of those at the meeting).

The chairman then spoke about the offer Leslie Deans and pals had made. He clarified that this wasn't just an £8 million injection of cash into Hearts, there were strings attached.

Interesting points

- SMG paid 140p per share, the offer by Leslie Deans was way under that, so they rejected it out of hand.

- If Leslie Deans acquired the shares he would own more than 30% of the whole company. With stock market rules, he would have to make an offer to all the shareholders for their shares. Does he have the dosh to do that?

- There's some doubt as to whether Leslie Deans can make an offer because as 50% owner of New Hearts Ltd who own 34% of Hearts, there's some doubt as to whether it can be separated because New Hearts still exist.

- In case there's any doubt, SMG have already had permission to buy more than 30% without having to offer for the whole company.

- It was noted that the finance houses (who presumably have a lot of money tied up in this) are still behind Hearts and the CE.

My personal opinion : I asked if the forum committee could ask why some of these points were not raised at the agm, as I felt that Leslie Deans had won the day, yet it seems that with some sensible argument, the assembled masses would have been given some valuable information. The chairman thanked me for my question, said it was a very good one, however he didn't want to dwell in the past and wanted to look forward.

CATERING

They have spoken to the company in question. Basically, they said there's been no increase in the past 2 years, and they are a small bakery and what what can they do? A deal has been struck recently where you can get 2 pies and a drink for £3, a saving of 90 pence. There's going to be a meeting after November, but the situation is not satisfactory and it is an on-going problem.

Question from the floor : How about having the pie stalls open after the game?

MERCHANDISING

The committee were very impressed with the catering manageress who gave them all the information they wanted. They talked about stock and were told that Hearts still have jewellery from 7 years ago. The rent is too high for a shop, as the margins are too small. The mail order section is working very well and profits are up. However no figures are available at this time.

Interesting point: there are three things currently being looked at but they are confidential.

COMMUNICATION

The forum told us where they advertised. The monthly Hearts magazine , A traditional mailing list, an E-Mail list and a page on the official web site are the main places.

They asked if there was anybody willing to get a web-site up and running.

Questions from the floor:

- What about a tannoy message at the match? A: it's been done before but it wasn't done this time.

- What has happened to the suggestion boxes we were promised?

- Could we have updates on progress in the Hearts magazine?

- Could you write to individual Federation club secretaries enclosing the appropriate minutes (guess who asked that one)

BTW - The roadshows are about to start up again

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There followed a presentation by TOM PURDIE (security and stadium manager) followed by a question and answer session

Tom appeared holding a DRUMCREE scarf. He said it was confiscated from a fan at the turnstyle. He also said these was some evidence that the incident both during the celtic game and after it at Haymarket was pre-arranged. He mentioned that Chelsea fans were arrested and three season tickets had been withdrawn. He also said that investigations were on-going and he couldn't elaborate.

He spoke about the Rangers jerseys and I asked him if the three people were ejected. He said that the police superintendent decided that to eject them would have caused more of a safety risk than not. He asked the assembled crowd if wearing a rangers top at a Hearts game when rangers were not playing was a breach of the peace, and most agreed it was.

We got onto the subject of flags. Tom said they confiscated several tricolours at the Celtic game. Only one was seen at the game and they dealt with that (ed - I must admit I didn't even see it). The person holding the union jack was ejected but didn't go peacefully.

The subject of corporate hospitality came up. There are problems every time the OF come. Tom Purdie actually said that this is one of the main reasons why Hearts should move to a new stadium. The was a query about an over excited rangers fan who was not ejected despite jumping up a couple of times and then falling asleep through drink, Tom said the supervisor (steward) had been spoken to about this incident.

Tom related a sad/funny story about the recent trip to Motherwell. The Hearts team bus was approaching a roundabout on the outskirts when they saw a man in his 30's with a small boy who couldn't have been more than 10 years old. When the boy saw the bus approaching he ran towards it. The Hearts players were ready to wave at the wee boy when he gave them two "v" signs and shouted "fuck off ya orange bastards". Needless to say the Hearts players were a wee bit gubsmacked!

Question from the floor : "what are you going to do about the people who constantly sing "If you hate the fucking hibees" in section G? OUCH!!!

I got the impression that as far as the security folk are concerned it's ok to swear, as they have far more serious things to contend with at the moment.

However, Tom want's the stewards to consider us as customers and so far it's not been bad. A lot of them come from Newcastle and they are a definite improvement on Rock Stready.

Thanks to Tom for an interesting half hour

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Questions/Suggestion/New ideas from the floor

- Why don't you open the bar (hear hear ed)

- Would you be able to get old players to the forum's?

- Is it possible to get advance information about the Under 21's

- Could we get a fasttrack pie lane like Kilmarnock

- Has a rail link at Murrayfield ever been considered?

____________________________________________________

Opinion: I don't know why more fans do not attend. It's more of a talking shop than a decision making forum, but in some respects I learned more from this meeting than I did at the Federation of Hearts Supporters meeting a week earlier. The information supplied by the Hearts board to the committee clarified and expanded on points that were missed at the agm because the chief players were too intent on playacting rather than giving hard facts. If it's information you want, and in addition you get a guest speaker, why not go along? I would particularly urge members of Federation clubs to attend. Put aside the opinions of the committee for at least one meeting and give it a chance - you may be pleasantly surprised by the openness of the forum.

More opinion : At the meeting there were at least three times when the chairman interrupted a person speaking from the floor saying "I don't want to interrupt anyone". The chairman's point was that we don't want to dwell in the past and we want to look forward. However, the only questions he did this with were ones related to the agm, money and the youth academy. I don't think these issues are in the past. I don't think their chairman realises that this is perhaps the first time some of the attendees had the chance to question the recent goings-on. I don't want to accuse the forum committee of following any agenda but they want to be careful with this. It's a well known ploy of the Chief Executive to tell people at meetings to move on and not dwell on the past, conveniently forgetting that those questions from the past were never answered adequately.

Craig Young

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OPEN MEETING - THURSDAY 22ND NOVEMBER, 2001

Arrangements and reports for the above Meeting were discussed. The Secretary had arranged for adverts to be put in the Straight from the Hearts Magazine and the Celtic Match Day Programme. Tom Purdie would be the guest speaker on the night.

NEXT COMMITTEE MEETING

The next Committee Meeting would be held at Tynecastle on Thursday, 6th December, 2001.

CLOSURE

The Chairman closed the Meeting at 9.30 p.m.

Peter Wilson, Jim Wyllie

MEETING WITH BOARD ON 15TH NOVEMBER, 2001

The Meeting with members of Hearts Board was due to take place at 6.30 p.m. on 15th November, 2001. Accordingly the Committee considered which priority issues they wished to raise and discuss with the Board. The four main subjects put forward were :-

The Proposed New Stadium
The Youth Academy
Club Finances
Team Policy.

Obviously these were wide subjects and could cover a whole range of questions which members wished to ask the Board.

___________________________________________________________________

Minutes of the Committee Meeting

held at Tynecastle on 1st November, 2001

ATTENDANCE

Members present were Ali Hibberd, Geoff Kilpatrick, Drew Oswald, Alex Penman, Fiona Walker, Peter Wilson and Jim Wyllie. Apologies were tendered on behalf of Stuart Crosbie and Alex Knight.

MINUTES OF PREVIOUS MEETING

The Minutes of the Meeting of 4th October, 2001, were duly adopted as a true record.

STEWARDING, SECURITY, CROWD BEHAVIOUR ETC

Tom Purdie, Hearts Security Adviser, and John McLean, General Manager of Touchline Event Management Ltd., were in attendance. A wide ranging discussion and question session took place covering virtually all aspects of crowd behaviour problems, stewarding and policing which considerably enlightened the members. Both guestes outlined their policies on various matters and how they dealt with a variety of problems. The Chairman thanked both for their attendance and participation in the discussion.

MATTERS ARISING

Catering

Communication

Geoff Kilpatrick had prepared a paper on this subject. It was agreed that members should examine this paper and discuss it at a later date.

________________________________________________________________

MINUTES OF THE COMMITTEE MEETING

HELD AT TYNECASTLE

ON 4TH OCTOBER, 2001

ATTENDANCE

Members present were Stuart Crosbie, Geoff Kilpatrick, Alex Knight, Alex Penman, Fiona Walker, Peter Wilson and Jim Wyllie. Apolgies were received from Ali Hibberd and Drew Oswald.

MINUTES OF 13TH SEPTEMBER, 2001

The said Minutes were duly adopted as a true record.

MATTERS ARISING THEREFROM/REPORTS

(a) Unacceptable Behaviour/Stewarding

The Secretary reported that Tom Purdie, Hearts Security Adviser, was on holiday and, therefore, unable to attend the Meeting but he would attend the next Committee Meeting to be held on 1st November, 2001. He had offered to bring along with him a representative from Touchline Event Management Limited and this offer was accepted by the Committee.

(b) Proposed New Stadium

It was believed that the S.F.A. would announce shortly what stadium proposals they would support in respect of Scotland's bid to host Euro 2008. Otherwise there was no new information to report.

(d) Catering

Alex Penman had written to Graeme Pacitti about the high costs of items on sale at home games but as yet no reply had been received.

(e) Communication

Alex Knight had drawn up an article for the Monthly Magazine appealing to young Hearts fans over 16 years to take an interest in the Fans' Forum It was agreed that in future Summaries of Open Meetings and Minutes of Committee Meetings should normally be displayed on the Forum Website once they had been approved.

MEETING WITH HEARTS' BOARD

Jim Wyllie reported that arrangements had been made to meet with Board representatives at Tynecastle at 6.30 p.m. on Thursday, 15th November, 2001. It was anticipated that Hearts' would be represented by the Chairman, the Chief Executive and the Finance Director.

COMPETENT BUSINESS

It was agreed that a speaker, normally from the Club, should be invited to Open Forum Meetings, commencing with Tom Purdie in November. Several other names were agreed for future invitations. It was felt that the Chief Executive, Chris Robinson, should normally be invited to the Forum AGM.

Mention was made of the Fans' Trusts operating at some other Clubs and Newcastle United's 10 Year Bond. Geoff Kilpatrick and Alex Penman offered to examine such schemes for information purposes at this stage.

NEXT COMMITTEE MEETING

The next Meeting will be held at Tynecastle at 7 p.m. on Thursday, 1st November, 2001.

CLOSURE

The Chairman closed the meeting at 8.50 p.m.

PETER WILSON, Chairman. Kim Wyllie Secretary.

Update from 11/11/2001

On behalf of the Fans Forum Committee, I would like to invite all Hearts fans to the next meeting of the Fans Forum on 22nd November, starting at 7.15pm in the Gorgie Suite. The fans forum is FREE and is open to all Hearts fans to discuss matters relating to our club, and to act as a conduit for discussing the issues raised with the relevant parties at the club.

Subject to confirmation, we hope to have a guest speaker at the forthcoming meeting and at most, if not all, subsequent meetings. We hope this will help to increase attendance at the meetings.

The Committee are continually seeking to improve communication, and I am presenting a report to the November Committee meeting on this issue, which will hopefully help to address this.

The Committee are meeting the board one week before the meeting, at which we intend to discuss a number of matters, such as : -

· The current financial situation of the club

· The proposed new stadium

· The Youth Academy

If you have a question, or a view, on these or ANY issue involving the club, please let us know. This is YOUR forum and your views matter.

You can contact us at a Forum meeting, by e-mail or post. The addresses are: -

E-mail: heartssupportersforum@yahoogroups.com

On behalf of the Committee

Geoff Kilpatrick

www.egroups.com/group/heartssupportersforum

AN ARTICLE FROM NIT ISSUE 53 SUMMARISING THE FORUM AGM

I was one of the diehard supporters who attended this years AGM in the Gorgie suite (can't remember the date, but strangely enough it was the same day Mickey left! Here's some of my thoughts on the evening&ldots;..

Let me say firstly that I was less then impressed with the attendance. I counted 66 poor souls. On the one hand I applaud all the work the committee do, but I do blame the forum committee and anybody else who was asked to promote the meeting but didn't for the poor attendance. I was surprised that the committee didn't mention that Chris Robinson was coming along, even if it was a mention on Kickback if it was a short notice thing (which I understand it wasn't).

When I entered the Gorgie Site I was asked if I had received details about the meeting. I told them no and I also stated that I had attended the original forum meeting, and I had yet to receive the minutes from that meeting. I have never received any correspondence from the forum by mail. I have received the odd E-Mail because I subscribe to the forum via the internet at yahoo.

The meeting started with the resignation of Chairman George Hawkins some of the committee and the appointment of some new non aligned members inclusing Fiona Walker, Alec Penman and Geoff Kilpatrick who will be no stranger to No Idle Talk veterans.

On the positive side, the committee claimed credit for the pricing of the 2001/2001 sseason tickets, they have also secured and open day and have opened communications between players fans and management. However, one of the appalling things that came out of this part of the meeting was that the Hearts forum have zero cash, not even enough money to photocopy enough agendas for the meeting! If Hearts set up the forum they should contribute something towards the upkeep. Yes, they are skint, but a couple of quid for stationary, come on, even we can afford that! (I've since learned from one of the new committee members that Hearts may loosen the purse strings )

The committee then went on to discuss the priorities for the new season&ldots;.

The Youth academy

The New Stadium (consultation with the fans being of primary importance)

Bigotry/bad language (good luck with that one)

Merchandising

Atmosphere

Following this, the committee opened the forum up for discussion. It was a free-for-all, where attendees were encouraged to speak into the microphone and say what they thought was important, here's a selection&ldots;..

Bigotry. The Celtic away match got several mentions, Ulster Hearts got a mention, and someone even offered to go to Parkhead to video the Hearts support to find the culprits!

Away fans behaviour in Mcleod St. I can sympathise with this one. There are weegies everywhere with their buckie and their bad language. Actually the police only seem to intervene when there is trouble, but they are allowed to make a mess, and there were at least two people present at the meeting who said thay had been abused verbally by the weedge, but when the remonstraed wioth the polis, they were told the take a hike.

New stadium consultation/alternatives given new rules on pitch sizes etc

How to get more people to the forum meetings. Distinct lack of young folk.

Catering prices/variety. A real concern that Hearts have not come into the 21st century with regard to what is available. In addition, what is available is far too expensive. The quality is poor compared to other grounds, so what we want to know is what are Hearts going to do about it?

The committee promised to take away these priorities and work on the throughout the season. After that, we were entertained by none other than our Chief Executive Chris Robinson. With his hand still warm from shaking Colin Cameron's hand for the very last time, he gave us an exclusive presentation about the new stadium to be built in time for the 2008 European Championships.

I think many of those present were truly gobsmacked with the whole proposal. I'm not a businessman, so don't write in if I get this wrong. Basically, what Chris Robinson is saying is that

© It would cost Hearts virtually nothing because, like the development of the Gyle, Hearts would be the catalyst, many businesses would pay to be part of the development as a whole, therefore funding most of it. All the Council and Hearts would need to do would be to rake in the profits.

I have to say that Chris Robinson was utterly convincing in this presentation, with backup from Fraser Jackson. Even in the face of criticism from the floor he was impressive. All we can really do at this point is watch this space.

SUMMARY OF THE ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING
HELD AT TYNECASTLE ON 23RD AUGUST, 2001

ATTENDANCE & APOLOGIES

Approximately 70 fans attended the Meeting. Apologies were received from Ronnie McCall and George Hawkins.

CHAIRMAN'S WELCOME AND ANNUAL REPORT

Peter Wilson, the Vice-Chairman, welcomed everyone to the first Annual General Meeting in the absence of the Chairman, George Hawkins. He informed the members that, due to business commitments, George could not attend and was not seeking re-election to the Committee as a non aligned member. He then read contents of an appropriate letter received from George which wished the Forum well for the future.

The Vice-Chairman then outlined the progress and some difficulties which the Committee had faced since its inception. The Committee had met 4 times with the Club Directors, 3 times with the Chief Executive and there had also been various meetings with Club Officials as well as numerous Committee Meetings. While the Forum had been formed at a difficult time in the Club's history, it had met with a fair amount of success in presenting matters raised by the fans, particularly in connection with ticket pricing. There had been established a genuine means of communication between the fans and the Club which had been a two way process. While financial losses had remained a problem at the Club, satisfactory progress was being made in the establishment of the Youth Academy. Ali Hibberd and Jim Wyllie, thereafter, gave reports on the negotiating, administrative and future issues facing the Forum. All three wished to thank Colin Sked for his helpful assistance since the formation of the Forum.

While originally it had been hoped to have a Committee of ten, the Federation of Hearts Supporters' Clubs had declined to participate. The remaining 9 members had gradually declined during the year, mainly due to work commitments, till only 5 currently remained. Only 3 non aligned members were seeking re-election.

Peter Wilson concluded by reminding those present that the members of the Committee were all committed Hearts supporters like themselves. He stated that while it was easy to grab a headline by making destructive comments about the Club, the Committee had at all times tried to be constructive in what they had attempted to do on behalf of the fans and for the benefit of our Club.

APPOINTMENT OF INTERIM CHAIRMAN

As it was now necessary to have an election for the 6 non aligned places on the Committee, Peter Wilson, was required to stand down from the Chair and it was agreed that Alex Knight should be appointed Interim Chairman for the remainder of the Meeting.

ELECTION OF FORUM COMMITTEE

Alex Knight stated that 6 nominations had been received for the 6 non aligned places on the Committee and, therefore, there was no need for an election.

The new Committee would comprise as follows :-

Non aligned members -Ali Hibberd, Geoff Kilpatrick, Alex Penman, Fiona Walker, Peter Wilson, Jim Wyllie

Shareholders' Association -Alex Knight
Disabled Supporters - Stuart Crosbie
Corporate Members - Drew Oswald

( Please note that at a short meeting held at the end of the proceedings, the following were duly appointed as Office Bearers -

Peter Wilson-Chairman
Ali Hibberd Vice Chairman
Jim Wyllie - Secretary

CONSTITUTION - NEW TITLE

A motion, which had earlier been circulated, was proposed and seconded, that in future the name of the Forum should be the Hearts Fans' Forum rather than the current Hearts Supporters' Forum. This was agreed by all those present without need for a division.

PRIORITY ISSUES FOR SEASON 2001/2

Considerable discussion followed on priority issues for the current season. The issues which would be subject of discussion by the Committee included :the proposed new stadium, Youth Academy, policing & stewarding,unacceptable behaviour at games and Club finances.

CORRESPONDENCE

For general information Jim Wyllie reported that he had written to the Scottish Premier League regarding the rule on fielding understrength teams. A reply had been received stating that Clubs were obliged to field full strength teams in all games but there was no definition of what was considered a full strength team .

PRESENTATION BY THE CHIEF EXECUTIVE

Chris Robinson then joined the Meeting and gave an enlightening presentation on the proposed building of a new stadium for the Club on the west side of the city. While the plans were still to be approved by the local authority, he outlined the proposals and timescale as far as possible at this stage and the reasons why it was necessary to move from Tynecastle. He was thanked by Alex Knight for his interesting presentation.

CLOSURE

_________________________________________________________

Minutes of the Committee Meeting

held at Tynecastle on 13th September, 2001.

ATTENDANCE

All members were in attendance.

CHAIRMAN'S WELCOME

Peter Wilson, the Chairman, welcomed the new members to the recently elected Committee.

MINUTES OF PREVIOUS MEETING

The Minutes of the previous Meeting held on 2nd August were adopted as a true record.

FORUM ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING HELD ON 23RD AUGUST, 2001

Various subjects raised at the said Meeting were discussed. The Secretary reported that £61 had been raised from the raffle which should be sufficient to cover administration and postage costs for some months. It was provisionally agreed to hold the next Forum Open Meeting in the Gorgie Suite at 7.15 p.m. on Thursday, 22nd November, 2001.

FUTURE ISSUES

Following the AGM amongst subjects and ideas raised and which the Committee wished to discuss and pursue were :- Communication with the Fans, the proposed New Stadium and UEFA Guidelines, Unacceptable Behaviour, Stewarding, Youth Academy, Merchandising, Catering and Lack of Atmosphere.

Two Sub-groups were formed to deal with the proposed new Stadium and the wide subject of Unacceptable Behaviour, Stewarding etc. The first Sub-group members being Drew Oswald, Stuart Crosbie and Peter Wilson while the latter's members are Ali Hibberd, Fiona Walker and Jim Wyllie.

In regard to the proposed New Stadium, while it was realised that it might be some time before details became available, it was important to be in position so that the Sub-group could act whenever necessary. It was thought that there could be an annnouncement by the S.F.A. as to which stadium/s they would support in respect of Euro 2008 on 4th October, 2001. Irrespective of that support, it was felt that a new stadium was essential to comply with future UEFA requirements and members were optimistic that the proposed plans would be approved.

In respect of the Behaviour question, it was agreed to invite Tom Purdie, Hearts Security Officer, along to the next Committee Meeting and to hold discussions in due course with Touchline Event Management Ltd, the new stewarding firm. While previously the Club had not appeared too keen on the idea of a Fans Charter, it was agreed to obtain and examine details of the proposed Charter.

In respect of catering and specific problems particularly the high cost of items, it was agreed that Alex Penman, who already had an interest in the subject, should write to Graham Pacitti to expedite matters.

It was recognised that we should endeavour to improve the Communications to and with the fans and in this respect Geoff Kilpatrick was tasked with looking at improved methods of communicating and to report back to the November Committee Meeting.

It was also felt that, it was in the Forum's interest to try and interest younger fans and Alex Knight was asked to examine this question.

It was believed that confining sales of Hearts merchandise to the Superstore and direct Mail Order had resulted in increased profit margins but there was a resultant lack of availability of Hearts goods elsewhere in the Edinburgh area. It was considered that this was a matter that could be raised again with the Club.

PROPOSED MEETING WITH THE HEARTS BOARD

The Committee agreed that it was essential to meet with representatives of the Board before the next Open Meeting. It was agreed to write to Chris Robinson requesting a meeting with the Board; Thursday, 8th November, 2001, being the preferred date. It was also agreed to firm up on the matters we wished to put forward at that Meeting at the next Committee Meeting.

COMPETENT BUSINESS

Several members expressed concern at the recent transfer of the Club Captain, Colin Cameron, to Wolves which had caused considerable unrest amongst the fans. While it was recognised that the Club's priority was to keep the Club's finances sound, it was felt that the Forum would like to know the true state of the Club's finances and plans for future team building. It was also thought necessary that the Committee should decide in advance what specific questions they wished to ask the Board in this connection, keeping in mind that certain financial and contractual matters were covered by Stock Exchange rules and legal confidentiality.

NEXT COMMITTEE MEETING

The next Meeting will be held at Tynecastle at 7 p.m. on Thursday, 4th October, 2001.

Peter Wilson, Chairman.Jim Wyllie, Secretary

__________________________________________________________

          The Hearts Supporters Forum
          PO Box 17174
          EDINBURGH WEST
          EH11 2ZY

Any letters giving your views about the Club, hopefully constructive, can be sent to this Box.   At the moment we are particularly focusing on ticket prices for next season with a view to trying to increase attendances.   A small sub-committee has already had an initial meeting with Colin Sked, Customs Services Manager, to get background details.   We welcome your ideas and suggestions by post or E mail.

last update 31/12/2000 (James Wylie sent us this)

QUESTIONS FROM FANS FORUM MEETING DECEMBER 2000

Fixing communication &ldots; maybe a case of shutting the stable door after the horse

has bolted?

Reply Hopefully not as the Forum gives both ourselves and the fans a communication vehicle. Additionally if our messages are vague or more information is needed we will be alerted early by the Forum. The Club also has had minimal opportunity to receive consensus feedback on many matters that interest fans.

Buying a Season Ticket for 2000/2001 is not an attractive alternative

Reply We hope that by next June it will become more appealing than some supporters feel at the moment.

Not happy at all with Jim Jefferies departure

Reply In light of the appointment of our new head coach, is this still the case?

Gary Naysmith transfer, all aspects seem a bad deal for Hearts

Reply This transfer was agreed with the knowledge that Bosman 2 will be upon us soon and all the uncertainty this brings. We agree that transfers between English Clubs tend to be higher than the fee Everton paid for Gary principally because the Scottish League, albeit wrongly, is viewed as a weaker league. We are therefore subject to market forces and prices that tend to be prejudiced by this thinking.

We feel that the deal we got for Gary, which included a sell on clause and also payments based on games played is a good one for the Club.

Hearts story is "never ending in the red". Other teams seem different, why?

Reply See reply below regarding the obligations of being a plc

Live within your means; if you think the wages are too high don't pay them!

Reply As in all businesses when a contract is signed we as employers must meet our obligations whilst the contract is running. At renewal time however decisions will be made on individual contracts based on previous performance, perceived value for money and whether the Head Coach sees the player adding value to the squad going forward.

A number of players are not good enough

Reply I think Craig Levein's published thoughts on the squad endorse that he also feels changes need to be made to allow him to properly influence how the team can play and compete.

Communication. We seem to receive wrong and confusing data and information.

Reply This will be difficult to overcome because press and media can often print stories with limited factual basis. We wish to discuss and agree with the Fans Forum the most effective ways to communicate with fans so that they at least hear or read first hand the Clubs angle on stories at all times.

Finance

Can we have clear details of the current financial strategy

Reply AGM presentation attached
How does the plc work and what is affected on the Hearts which is different from other football clubs

Reply Because we are a plc we are bound by Stock Exchange rules that amongst others states that financially we require to be more transparent than say a private or limited company, so from a financial point of view we can have no secrets from our members, the shareholders. The weeks around our yearly and half yearly results are deemed by the Stock Exchange to be "closed periods" and as a consequence ALL employees of Hearts are prohibited from discussing any financial matters as this could possibly impact on share dealings and price. All information that could be construed as sensitive to the running of the company (e.g. the announcement of the new head coach) must first be advised to the Stock Exchange before anyone else. With the Stock Exchange hours being 7.30am on Monday to 5.30pm Friday, should anything of this nature happen on a weekend the Club would be unable to make any official comment until after 7.30am Monday. Whereas other clubs can be more circumspect in their financial dealings, we require to be open and transparent.
What is the limit of debt the plc would not exceed and if exceeded what would be the result as far as the Club is concerned.

Reply In our Articles of Association we are subject to a borrowing limit of £9M. Our Articles preclude us borrowing beyond that limit without the approval of our members the shareholders.
Can we have clear details of the SMG deal (and is the SMG deal a loan)

Reply Whilst all £8M has been received £4M is in Convertible Loan Stock that the earliest this can be converted to equity is November 2001, to comply with Stock Exchange Regulations for share transactions of this type.
Has the direct selling of replica shirts been a success

Reply We consider that it has been a great success with an increase to date of 50% in volume sales. At this rate we are confident our profit margin will exceed the "up front" payment received by previous suppliers Olympic. The added benefit here is that we now have in our database details of customers that we did not know about for future marketing of our merchandise and club products.
What is the ERREA deal worth to the Club?

Reply ERREA is our main supplier of football clothing merchandise and our contract with them is exclusively based on that. There is no sponsorship deal money over and above so the money we make as a result of merchandise sales is the worth of the ERREA deal to Hearts.
Towards the end of last season it was announced that the Strongbow deal had increased by 25%. The question is 25% of what.

Reply This is a commercially confidential matter between ourselves and Strongbow.

8. Marketing and sales focus to attract support from Edinburgh's large untapped business community

Reply A considerable amount of "cold calling" has been done over the last 18 months following our re-vamp of the Sales and Marketing team with the effect that for this season, for the first time, we had sold the sponsorship of every SPL league game to commercial companies prior to the start of the season. Anyone that has been involved in telephone selling will know that when "cold calling" large companies or plc's you are not always armed with the exact contact and this information is not always available from a switchboard operator or receptionist, however we would always appreciate help from anyone that could facilitate face to face meetings or provide us with "warm" leads to pursue.

9. Consider another 500 club or similar option

Reply This would be considered when our next capital project is decided.

Players

The team for next season, what will be improved

Reply Craig Levein has already said that he wishes to change the balance of the squad and is already reviewing players strengths and weaknesses and value to the squad and as a first step has advised clubs that approaches will be considered for three players and their agents are already speaking with clubs. Hearts have made a formal approach to St Johnstone enquiring about the availability of Gary Bollan and the coaching and scouting team are already checking out others.
The Coventry City offer for Gary Naysmith appears on the face of it to have been a "give-away" and the board were willing to accept it. Can we have details of the bid?

Reply Once again any details are commercially confidential. We can reveal however that the payment structure and total bid offered by Everton was a £250K improvement on Coventry’s.
What is the asking price for Colin Cameron & Antti Niemi

Reply This one is easy, as we have no wish to invite bids from clubs or indeed have no current need to sell either player. Our strategy is to have a "spine" of experienced players at the Club and both these players fall into that category. However we are under no illusion of how aware players and their agents are of what even moderately successful clubs in the English Premier League are paying players
If the Youth Academy is put in place and is a success what guarantee can the board give that the young players produced will not just be sold on

Reply It is not possible to give guarantees regarding the non-selling of players as it is often the case that players want to leave to further their careers elsewhere. We see it important, however, that home bred players stay at the club for a good period of time.

Jim Jefferies

Has Jim Jeffereies signed a non disclosure/ confidential agreement?

Reply All contractual agreements between parties are of a confidential matter.
What was the full background to Jim Jefferies departure?

Reply Discussions were instigated against a background of performance and demonstration. These led to the board unanimously agreeing to his departure.
Fans believe the football budget available to Jim Jefferies is different to what the new manager will have - is this so?.

Reply Our policy of reducing costs has not changed. At present Craig Levein has advised 3 players that he considers them surplus to requirement and they are free to find alternative clubs and following discussions with their agents we are advised that all players could be fixed up with new clubs within the next three weeks. This has allowed us to quantify and project savings that these moves will provide and this has allowed the coaching staff the scope to consider new players.

Hearts in the Community

Provide the free entrance every week for say 100 disadvantaged fans

Reply This already happens on an ad-hoc basis but in the main to children's organisations and youth clubs with an affiliation to Hearts and normally we allocate more than 100 tickets for these games. However we would welcome feedback on what else could be done.
Provide crèche facilities at Tynecastle to allow parents with young families to attend games

Reply We have been giving this some thought and are investigating what regulations, licences and premises are required to set one up. We also wish to explore the opportunity of using, on matchdays, the Nursery School that is located behind the Old Main Stand (North End).
Have players go out into local schools in an effort to create interest and attract new fans.

Reply Once again this already happens but because many of the players live some distance from Edinburgh and as most of the requests are for late afternoon or evening (the players train during the day) the previous football management team were unhappy that this responsibility invariably fell to the foreign players or those living in or around Edinburgh. We are open to suggestions on this one.

Communication

Outwith meetings, direct link should be between forum and the Hearts Chairman

Reply Initially we would wish first point of contact to be Colin Sked our Customer Services Manager and Colin has been charged with the responsibility of internally ensuring that responses to questions or enquiries are received promptly from the appropriate area within the Club.
Improve overall communication between board and fans

Reply Agreed, what needs is feedback as to what forms are the most effective or desired?
Written commitment from Hearts that they will respond to the forum in a timely and effective manner.

Reply Agreed, a Service Level Agreement will be produced to cover the responsibilities of both Club and Forum to ensure and agree that all parties ensure that deliverables can be met.

Merchandise

Idea that the fans could be involved in selection of shirt design to ensure maximum sales

Reply This has merit and was tried by Middlesborough this season, through their web-site to select their away strip. In the eyes of Middlesbrough it was a success.

General

Improve half time entertainment (such as fans taking penalties etc)

Reply We will consider anything that is seen to improve half time entertainment.

Chris Robinson has admitted making mistakes, in accepting this could we

have details of what Chris believes are his mistakes?

Reply Too many to detail! But seriously these often refer to NOT accepting transfers for players and also stretching the player budget.
Forget all the conditions, scenarios, background reasons etc &ldots;. When do the board think the new stand will be built?

Reply See presentation delivered at AGM
What other committees are in place which Hearts officials and fans as forum need to have clear picture of infrastructure in place?

Reply Federation of Hearts Supporters Clubs & Shareholders Association

_____________________________________________________________

22/11/2000

(1) We've managed to get an E-mail address. It has an associated web site http://www.egroups.com/group/heartssupportersforum

Beautiful Jambo ladies are waiting to take your calls!

(2) Keith is busying away writing up the flip chart comments, ideas and questions for the Board. This will get posted shortly.(see the list at the bottom of this page).

(3) George had a fun day at tic park. Loads of fans spoke to him with issues and comments. These will get lobbed in with Keith's report.
Keep em coming.

(4) We want to make the suggestions box idea happen. Any joiners fancy lending a hand in making these things? As it stands we need wood, paint, nails & hammer. Oh, and someone to bash the nails in.

(5) Watch out for news re the Fed. I think good things are happening with the Fed, NIT (cheers Craig. For me, one of the great things about all that is happening is that all organisations are raising their profile and we really are working for the good of the Club as we see it.

Can't wait to see Ali doing his surgery. Mind you, he might do that in the boozer.
Cheers all.

WE ARE THE HEART OF MIDLOTHIAN.

Keith's List.

To be passed to the board for comment if they so desire....

Information gathered at forum meeting 15th November 2000

* Fixing communication...maybe a case of shutting the stable door after the horse has bolted.

* Buying a season ticket for 2000/2001 is not an attractive proposition.

* Not happy at all with Jim Jeffries departure.

* Gary Naysmith transfer....all aspects seem a bad deal for Hearts

* Hearts story is "never ending in the red". Other teams seem different why?

* Live within your means,if you think wages are too high don't pay them!

* A number of players are just not good enough

* Communication...we seem to receive wrong and confusing data and information.

This is a posting made by Christopher Pitt on kickback on 31/10/2000

__________________________________________

We wish to transmit issues to the Board as soon as possible and a meeting has been arranged to which ALL supporters are invited to attend. The meeting will take place as follows:

Wednesday 15 November 2000
at 7.30pm
in The Gorgie Suite, Tynecastle Stadium, Edinburgh

We hope that the Federation of Hearts Supporters Clubs will take up their reserved seat on the Forum Committee so that as wide a range of ideas as possible can be gathered and put forward on behalf of the fans. It is imperative that the correct decisions are made for the long-term security and prosperity of the club we hold so dear.

The unique offer made by the Board to meet with the Supporters’ Forum Committee and discuss all the ideas and issues raised by the fans in general, should be grasped by all sections of the support.

The following are the aims and objectives of the Supporters’ Forum as agreed at the inaugural meeting on 24 September:

AIMS
"To help unlock the potential of Hearts Football Club through the active participation of supporters in all areas of its business."

OBJECTIVES
To establish an open two-way communication process for the channelling of ideas and feedback.
To continuously improve customer service.
To participate in the long-term strategy for the growth and prosperity of the club.
To make Tynecastle Stadium a place where fans want to come (and visiting teams don’t!)
To take responsibility for harnessing the energy of supporters for the benefit of the club.
To effectively communicate the issues discussed and the action taken to as wide an audience as possible.

Issued by the Hearts Supporters Forum Committee: non-aligned members – George Hawkins, Ali Hibberd, David McLennan, Christopher Pitt, Peter Wilson & Jim Wyllie.
Shareholders Assoc.-Alex Knight. Disabled Supporters – Keith Ferguson. Corporate Members – Drew Oswald.

The meeting planned (Nov 15) is to be an opportunity to let the fans know how the forum committee plans to function. This will include three key issues:

1. How the committee can be contacted.
2. What the committee will do with issues raised.
3. How the committee will in turn feedback to the fans.

The "constitution" will also be laid out. In addition, we'll hear how Stoke City set up and now run their forum (the only other such venture) and there'll be a chance to raise issues.

As far as the communication thing goes, there were many ideas including setting up an email address at the club, a postal address, suggestions boxes in the ground, pub comments books, a roving mike (wherein a "mascot" armed with a tape recorder and a mike would wander around the stands asking fans views on a "topic of the day" or just what ever they felt needed saying). You know those two craggy old punters, Jake and Tam, in the match day magazine? It was suggested that they "appear" as the roving reporters. Alternatively, we could set up a competition for the kids to design a mascot. (First prize could be dress up as the mascot for a match.

Topics raised will be "investigated." i.e we'd try and draw out details and suggestions etc. These we'd pass on to the Club for comment. We'd then feedback to the rest of the fans.

Feedback: via radio, newspaper, matchday mag, NIT/ ATB, Kickback and other web-sites, via the federation, flyers and posters on match day and via the stadium announcements.

Sorry it's so long (both this posting and the forum going live).

Thoughts and suggestions please..

_______________________________________

Sounds good. There's a meeting tomorrow (Wednesday 25th) night. I'll table the NIT idea (using this forum) and let you know later.

We seem to get bogged down in "meetings-dom." Mind you, establishing a constitution, though frustratingly slow, is needed.

So far we have tried to work through the constitution. Next step is to send that out to the supporters. There's a forum meeting planned for late Nov.23 or 24 probably. I'll confirm later.

At the end of the last meeting an "ideas sheet" was passed round. This had loads of ideas to raise our profile amongst the fans. That'll get discussed tomorrow night. Hopefully I'll be able to send you the sheet or at least a copy of the ideas we adopt.

Also, we sent one of our lads down to Stoke to chat to their forum head honcho. A report of this arrived today but I ain't had a chance to read it yet. That'll get discussed too. A glance at it shows there to be much about being pro-active and keeping up the momentum. Hopefully between them these two papers will result in ACTION.

I'll E-mail you later this week with results and thoughts etc.

________________________________________________

If you have any questions you would like the forum to ask on your behalf, E-Mail now.

There will be more updates to this section shortly

this section maintained by Craig Young