There will be additional tickets checks in Block 14 at Friday night’s game versus Peterborough, following feedback from supporters.
Supporters have fed back comments to Coventry City, Ricoh Arena and West Midlands Police, who all work together to manage safety in and around the stadium on matchday, which has prompted the additional ticket checks for this area.
Existing ticket checks for Blocks 15 and 16 will continue.
The three organisations will shortly be holding a joint open forum event with supporters to talk about matchday stewarding and any safety concerns they have on matchdays.
Ultimate control of safety at the Ricoh Arena falls under Arena Coventry Limited (ACL) as holders of the safety certificate. Their designated Safety Officer Paul Cook runs the matchday from a safety point of view from the control room, working alongside the CCFC Safety Officer Nicki Pollard and her team of CCFC supervisors and stand managers, and stewards who are employed by CCFC.
Coventry City, the Ricoh Arena and West Midlands Police work in partnership on matchdays and in advance of games, having weekly pre and post-match briefings to discuss issues raised in stewarding and other areas of fans matchday experience, and how it can be improved.
Dave Boddy, Coventry City Chief Executive, said: “We felt it was important to act upon the comments received regarding fans from other areas sitting in Block 14, and to communicate to fans that these ticket checks would be taking place.
“We agreed this at a recent joint matchday meeting, which we hold before and after each game. Meanwhile, the joint open forum will give us a chance to speak to fans about matchday arrangements and their experience of them, and we will announce details of this soon.”
Paul Cook, Safety Officer at the Ricoh Arena, and Nicki Pollard, Safety Officer at Coventry City FC, said: “The matchday teams of Coventry City and its stewards, the Ricoh Arena and the Police will be working together to make these ticket checks on Friday, and we’d like to thank fans for their co-operation.
“The aim of us all is to improve the matchday experience for Sky Blues fans and to ensure their safety and enjoyment while they are at the Ricoh Arena, and that is why these checks are taking place and why we are planning a joint open forum event shortly.”
Sean Cockerton, West Midlands Police Force Football Unit’s Dedicated Football Officer for Coventry City, said: “We will be working alongside Coventry City stewards and the Ricoh Arena safety team in undertaking these additional ticket checks on Friday, and to ensure fans are sitting in correct blocks to ensure the enjoyment and safety of all supporters.
“While I meet fans both home and away as part of my role, I am looking forward to joining the teams at Coventry City and the Ricoh Arena in holding the joint open forum for fans. It will hopefully be an opportunity for supporters to give their feedback, and understand reasons for some of the arrangements which are in place on Coventry City home matchdays.”
Details regarding the joint open forum will be confirmed shortly.