The Trust Survey

[marky No.1]

Unfortunately less than 50% of the Membership bothered to vote. The Trust need a majority to move forward, so that's the end of that till the last kick of a ball.
The majority of those that did respond aren't in favour of a boycott.

Jason must be laughing his head off

[black morse]

Unfortunately less than 50% of the Membership bothered to vote. The Trust need a majority to move forward, so that's the end of that till the last kick of a ball.
The majority of those that did respond aren't in favour of a boycott.

Jason must be laughing his head off

Indeed. It's appalling that more than half of Trust members cannot be bothered to vote on such a vital topic. There really is no hope I'm afraid.

[marky No.1]

As someone pointed out elsewhere, there are approx 800 Trust members, so no more than 400 fans have voted out of a regular fan base of say 2,500?

Can't draw much of a conclusion from that

[Old Man Kensey]

The Figures :

For reference, the trust has 759 members.
27.3% of members voted. Of that 60% voted against boycott.
Those that voted for boycott, represented 12.5% of the total membership.
For the Trust to consider a boycott/ NAPM campaign the response rate would need to be over 50% of members, then a majority of that 50% would need to vote for it.
We will run the vote again when the season ends.
The Trust can only take the position of the true majority of its members, it can’t stop other individuals or groups boycotting/ gathering support for boycott.

So 60/40 split from those that bothered to vote.

[marky No.1]

O.M.K. yes official figures from the horses mouth.

Nothing for the Trust to work on with those low numbers

[Keith]

The Trust said;

"We are aware that due to high emotions at present, there are lots of opinions being given, especially in online forums. We've seen some 'false information' being stated as fact. If you are unsure of anything and want to check please do reach out"

Well, obviously, there is no "false information" on ShrimpsVoices, as the Trust don't read this forum. If they did read it, there would be no excuse for not engaging here, for example, to link to the questionnaire in the first place, or to rectify the "false information".

I agree, there isn't anything for the Trust to take from such a response. But, in that case, what can they do? Whittingham will continue to feed them BS, knowing they are toothless.

Business as usual next season. After all, it worked so well this season. And last season...

[Old Man Kensey]

The Trust said;

"We are aware that due to high emotions at present, there are lots of opinions being given, especially in online forums. We've seen some 'false information' being stated as fact. If you are unsure of anything and want to check please do reach out"

Well, obviously, there is no "false information" on ShrimpsVoices, as the Trust don't read this forum. If they did read it, there would be no excuse for not engaging here, for example, to link to the questionnaire in the first place, or to rectify the "false information".

I agree, there isn't anything for the Trust to take from such a response. But, in that case, what can they do? Whittingham will continue to feed them BS, knowing they are toothless.

Business as usual next season. After all, it worked so well this season. And last season...

I quite like the Trusts policy on Social Media. Stuff can soon go off thread and be misconstrued very easily. They are easy to contact via email and are usually very prompt in their responses.

As for a link to the poll, why would that be necessary? An email was sent directly to each member with the necessary link.

[KenH]

As for a link to the poll, why would that be necessary? An email was sent directly to each member with the necessary link.

[quote="Old Man Kensey"]

Well, lots of trust members won't have provided an email address so won't have received the email link to the survey. Quite a lot of members are elderly and may not use the internet. Obviously, that doesn't matter when talking about online links to the poll on other SM channels. I'd like to have seen a statistic as to how many trust members have a valid email address as that may well change the picture as to the apparent apathy of a majority of trust members "not bothering" to vote, - as far as I know, there was no alternative way to vote other than the internet poll which obviously excludes those who aren't using smart phones/laptops, etc. Feel free to correct me if members without email were given an alternative method of voting?

[Old Man Kensey]

Well, lots of trust members won't have provided an email address so won't have received the email link to the survey. Quite a lot of members are elderly and may not use the internet. Obviously, that doesn't matter when talking about online links to the poll on other SM channels. I'd like to have seen a statistic as to how many trust members have a valid email address as that may well change the picture as to the apparent apathy of a majority of trust members "not bothering" to vote, - as far as I know, there was no alternative way to vote other than the internet poll which obviously excludes those who aren't using smart phones/laptops, etc. Feel free to correct me if members without email were given an alternative method of voting?

Why not email them and ask? Like I said they are usually really quick at getting back to you.
There will be the Trusts annual election at the next AGM in July. Why not put forward a candidate backed by Shrimpsvoices? And no I'm not volunteering

[Billy bodger]

Just an observation and not in any way a go at people but what a poor turn out. With the majority of those who voted not to join the NAPM campaign, would it be turned around by bigger turn out in a rerun of the poll in July?

I don’t know what the trust may or may not know anymore than an ordinary supporter.

I would however like to ask this question; Is there a definitive record of what Whittington has taken out of the Club already and what he will get back if indeed he is putting in money to be paid back at the point of sale.
Without a definitive answer, how do you vote? Do you vote on that after four years of the Club being up for sale and he is still the owner, that he’s taking the Micky while the Club is in decline because he cannot fund it to a decent level and that will continue next season whatever league we are in.

[P/T Indie]

The lack of response just shows the apathy for the club amongst the fans. It' like the hardcore of 1500 from years ago are still bothered but all the new people that started coming when in league 1 and the free season tickets came out probably aren't that interested and will eventually float away.

This year most people have had their head in the sands, yet it was plain for all to see at this time last year what was going to happen when we only had one contracted player.

If this was happening at Carlisle, Bradford etc the fans would have been organised throughout the whole year and kicking up a right fuss instead we just go along with trust the board, trust Derek, trust joe bloggs down the road, trust Christie the cat etc etc

It's a shame the 1920 group wasn't started a lot earlier they have had some great ideas that could have gained more traction given more time.

[Westgate Wanderer]

I think it's a pity that only trust members got the survey as they represent a third of supporters? Might have got a bigger opinion either way doing that. How many votes does it take to get the right answer?

[Hodgie1978]

To be fair they represent their members. I'd expect more in the coming days from 1920 Union explaining why the NAPM campaign is the only way forward.

[Billy bodger]

If the NAPM campaign is to be successful, as in numbers, it needs to spell out why the campaign has been started, what was the breaking point when it came to deciding to start the campaign, its aims and more importantly what it hopes to achieve.

It needs to persuade as many Morecambe fans as it can to join the campaign, the season tickets are out soon, it quickly needs to get people onside, weather that is an initial boycott of purchasing a season ticket by as many fans as possible.

Then and only then will the message get across to our stay away owner that Morecambe fans are fed up of being taken for granted.

[twosheds]

I keep reading about the 1920 Union but I can't find anything on line about who they are? Is there a website where those of us that wish to find out more can visit? I'm not on Facebook or Twitter....

[Wild Bill]

I tried filling the survey but it started asking for a Google password. Need to make it easier to do without blockers

[Hodgie1978]

I keep reading about the 1920 Union but I can't find anything on line about who they are? Is there a website where those of us that wish to find out more can visit? I'm not on Facebook or Twitter....

They are a group of long standing fans that decided to form a protest group against Jason Whittingham. They are not an official supporters group so they don't have an website.
They put lots of pressure on Jason and every time they do something Jason always comes trotting out to the media.
The threat of NAPM has also brought them out.

[nobbyshrimp]

1920union@gmail.com

Also on X (formerly twitter) I believe although I’m not

[Keith]

I keep reading about the 1920 Union but I can't find anything on line about who they are? Is there a website where those of us that wish to find out more can visit? I'm not on Facebook or Twitter....

They are quite a secretive group. That's understandable, if they want to arrange protests without Whittingham or the club knowing about it in advance, such as the posters in Whittingham's home area, such as his local Waitrose. But, that means unless involved, it isn't possible to know how many people are involved. In turn, that will make it impossible to arrange protests that involve a large group of fans.

I agree that The Trust can only represent the members, and they can't recommend supporting a 'Not a Penny More' campaign without a clear mandate from the majority of members. That said, they need to make communication as clear and easy as possible. For something this important, it may have been worth sending a letter as well as email to all members, with a return address, so people could choose 'old style' if they wanted, or, as Bill mentioned in this thread, they weren't able to log on to the questionnaire.

The Trust said;

"We are aware that due to high emotions at present, there are lots of opinions being given, especially in online forums. We've seen some 'false information' being stated as fact. If you are unsure of anything and want to check please do reach out"

Well, obviously, there is no "false information" on ShrimpsVoices, as the Trust don't read this forum.

I quite like the Trusts policy on Social Media. Stuff can soon go off thread and be misconstrued very easily. They are easy to contact via email and are usually very prompt in their responses.

As for a link to the poll, why would that be necessary? An email was sent directly to each member with the necessary link.

I disagree. One of the key arguments from fans is the lack of information from the club. If The Trust have information that needs to be communicated, not held back. If they are aware of incorrect statements being shared, then correct them. Other people will quickly pick up on the corrections and share them further. For example, if the false information was on here and The Trust corrected it, the next time it was repeated, someone would quickly quote the previous correction. Simply saying "we've seen some 'false information' being stated as fact", then letting it carry on being spread is adding to the problem, not resolving it.

As it is, if the 'Not a Penny More' campaign isn't supported, or doesn't go ahead in significant numbers, what are fans going to do? What will 'The Trust' do? Carry on as before, but in the National League? National League North? North West Counties?

[Old Man Kensey]

As it is, if the 'Not a Penny More' campaign isn't supported, or doesn't go ahead in significant numbers, what are fans going to do? What will 'The Trust' do? Carry on as before, but in the National League? National League North? North West Counties?

I believe the Trust are going to hold a formal vote of members once the season is complete, with more details on the pros and cons on NAPM to allow for a more informed decision.

You can only hope that more people turn out and vote, without a mandate either way the Trust's hands are really tied. You'd also hope that anyone that isn't a member of the Trust signs up and get their voices heard.

[Keith]

You can only hope that more people turn out and vote, without a mandate either way the Trust's hands are really tied. You'd also hope that anyone that isn't a member of the Trust signs up and get their voices heard.

Absolutely, 100% agree with this. I can't understand why any Morecambe fan hasn't joined The Trust. We really need two-thousand+ members to really have a voice.

We also need to be planning to become a phoenix club when the worst options come to fruition. The Trust is the only vehicle for that to happen. And yes, I deliberately said "when", not "if", as I genuinely believe this is the most likely outcome of the current shambles

[twosheds]

They are quite a secretive group. That's understandable, if they want to arrange protests without Whittingham or the club knowing about it in advance, such as the posters in Whittingham's home area, such as his local Waitrose. But, that means unless involved, it isn't possible to know how many people are involved. In turn, that will make it impossible to arrange protests that involve a large group of fans.

Then they can't criticise fans for not getting behind them and any campaigns they organise if they haven't a clue what's being planned. It's not apathy that's stopping fans becoming involved, it's the lack of communication....I know, that's criticism that's also been aimed at the club and the Trust.

[Hodgie1978]

But they have communicated.
At the moment there is no boycott but if Jason hasn't sold by the start of next season there will be.
They won't be criticising any fan that doesn't boycott.
Expect a minimum of 200 boycotting.

[twosheds]

But they have communicated.

Where? The only social media I'm on is here and Instagram I would also imagine that there are other fans like me that don't use the the more popular platforms....

[Hodgie1978]

Unfortunately it is 2025 and they do the best to communicate that they can.
I will try and put everything on here that they tweet or put on the fans Facebook page