Member Article

York City Knights Foundation continues to offer free rugby league tickets to local youngsters thanks to new local housebuilder partnership

The York City Knights Foundation, the community arm of the city’s professional rugby league club, will continue to offer free tickets to local under 16s next season thanks to a support pledge from local housebuilder, Barratt Developments Yorkshire East.

The new partnership will see the housebuilder contribute over £18,000 to cover the administrative and management costs required for the Knights to continue offering free tickets to local youngsters following the club’s move to its state-of-the-art LNER Community Stadium. As a result, the foundation will be able to redirect valuable funds towards other areas of its community engagement programme, to support the education, health and wellbeing of those in the local community.

The club expects to give over 10,000 tickets to youngsters from across the city over the course of the 2021 season having seen the level of interest in watching live fixtures rise considerably since the club first decided to offer free tickets in 2017.

As part of the new partnership, the foundation will also be able to offer game day experiences for every fixture over the course of the forthcoming season. Its game day experience packages allow youngsters from local clubs, schools and other community groups to enjoy an enhanced matchday experience including stadium tours, use of the stadium’s wider leisure facilities, and the opportunity to be player mascots, flag bearers or form the players’ guard of honour before kick-off.

Barratt Developments Yorkshire East’s backing of the foundation forms part of the organisation’s pledge to support the communities in which it builds. The housebuilder currently has six active developments in the York region, including The Chocolate Works on Bishopthorpe Road and Fairfield Croft in Skelton.

Jon Flatman, chairman of the York City Knights said: “We have always tried to offer free tickets to under 16s but our move to the new stadium adds a cost to this commitment. We’re therefore extremely grateful for the support offered by Barratt Developments Yorkshire East, which will allow thousands of local youngsters to experience a live matchday in what promises to be an exciting season for the club.

“The support of Barratt will further add value to the ability of the foundation to link the education, health and mental wellbeing of our local communities with the matchday experience.”

Daniel Smith, Managing Director at Barratt Developments Yorkshire East added: “We are always looking to do all we can to support the communities in which we build and the York City Knights Foundation does a fantastic job of making the thrills of live sport accessible to the region’s youngsters. We’re excited to play our part in a new chapter for the club at the LNER Community Stadium and can’t wait to see young people from across the region continue to show their support.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Richard Savage .