WELCOME TO THE NEW SEASON with THE LUTON TOWN SUPPORTERS’ TRUST
Well, what a start to the season last Saturday was! An amazing comeback and terrific support from our fans. It felt towards the end of last season that something special is building with Jack, Chris and the lads, and it looks like it’s continuing to gain momentum. We could be in for some truly wonderful Hatters-supporting times in the coming months!
There’s a tangible sense of bonding right across the club, as those of us who were lucky enough to go out to Spain pre-season saw and experienced, and that’s been boosted by some key signings and – importantly – re-signings. Plus, of course, the excitement of some of ‘our own’ young players coming through. That’s always a huge plus for us all, isn’t it! The future is looking bright – and orange, purple, and white!
The Trust has had a busy summer, too, and we’re using these first programme notes to bring you up to speed with what’s been going on and what’s in the pipeline. Like the club, we’re anticipating and planning for the run up to Power Court, whilst making the most of our precious remaining time at Kenilworth Road.
Looking to the future
One of the things we are acutely conscious of is engaging more closely with younger fans: the future for the club and for the Trust. We want to know what fans aged 16-30 would like to see from the Trust. What makes us relevant and important to you: how we can better represent your voices and views in our role as shareholders in the club on your behalf.
In the next week or so we’ll be launching our Youth Advisory Board, starting by inviting teens-to-thirty fans to take part in a 12-month exploration of what a fully inclusive and forward-thinking Trust might look like – and how we can get there.
The Youth Advisory Board objectives are to:
• Provide a voice for younger supporters in Trust decision-making
• Advise the Trust on how to better engage younger fans
• Help shape the campaigns, events and communication strategies through the eyes of a youth supporter
• Create a pipeline of future leaders within the Trust
It’s a great opportunity to see and shape how the Trust works with the club and local communities, and to meet and network with key figures at the Trust and club.
Our aim is to bring together a wide and inclusive range of young people: if you think this is something you’d like to be involved with, look out for our official launch or contact dee.walker@lutontownsupporterstrust.com You don’t need to be a Trust member to apply, all 16-30s are welcome. We’ll be selecting up to 10 members for the YAB by an online process, with zoom interviews for those shortlisted.
Enhancing fan engagement
The creation of this Youth Advisory Board is part of the Trust’s ongoing aims of broader and better engagement across the fan base. It’s one of the practical outcomes of the face-to-face Strategy Meeting we held last year, where we asked members what they would like to see from the Trust. In the next couple of months, we’ll be holding another of these in-person events, including presentations and Q&As with senior figures from the club, as we progress on ‘The Journey to Power Court’. Look out for details – the event will be for Trust members only, so if you’re not already a member now’s a good time to join!
Are you a social media whizz?
We’re also looking at a new and broader approach to our comms – which, with the ever-expanding growth of social media, has come to cover a whole host of areas which call for varying skills and commitments.
If you’re a bit of a whizz with social media – or if you’re looking to develop your skills – we’d love to hear from you. The job of covering all the various outlets and ensuring we get our messages out – news and initiatives, statements and info about events and so on – calls for enthusiasm, energy…and an understanding of how social media works. And how important it is to get the wording right to represent the Trust accurately across all channels, from WhatsApp and Facebook/x to Instagram and YouTube.
We’re partnering with Beds University to help us develop a team to cover all aspects of media, and you’ll be seeing some exciting new initiatives through the year, plus our ongoing Trust interviews. Want to be involved too? Let us know by sending an email to paul.stephens@lutontownsupporterstrust.com telling us a bit about yourself, your experience and how much time you could potentially commit. The social media world whirls around quickly so we need to always be on the ball!
Our annual financial review with the club
As your official representatives and shareholders in the club, the Trust recently met with the club for our annual financial review, discussing the 2024/25 accounts of the football club, 2020 Developments and the holding company. In addition to the statutory accounts filed at Companies House, we received more detailed non-public pages from the full accounts in advance. This enabled us to prepare our questions and, along with the open and frank approach taken by the club, to achieve full assurance about the accounts. The club encouraged us to challenge and no questions were denied although confidentiality and commercial sensitivity means that certain subjects such as details of players’ contracts and salaries could not be revealed. Trust members have received an email summary of the meeting, which can also be found on the Trust website. It covers areas like financial stability, player trading, Premier League monies, Power Court and finances for the 2026/27 season.
In the words of Trust Chair Paul Stephens:
“Supporters are understandably eager to understand more about the club’s finances and its future, especially with our move to Power Court coming closer and closer – and with the events of recent seasons. This meeting gave us the opportunity to ask their questions directly, in our official role as shareholder representatives. Our discussions leave us encouraged about the club’s financial position and its long-term plans. There are challenges ahead, but the foundations are strong, Power Court continues to move forward, and the squad has been strengthened for the new season whilst the club continues to operate in a sustainable manner with a clear focus on the long term.”
Improving communications
This is the second year we’ve been able to provide a full summary of the meeting – a pleasing aspect of improved communications between club, Trust and the broader fanbase. That’s an area we’re working closely with the club on, and we’re delighted that we are now putting in place an enhanced and firmly structured communications programme. You’ll be seeing much more open comms and opportunities to connect with and question the club through the Trust. In coming months, we have a Shareholder rights agreement meeting with the club to formally underline this commitment, and we’ll also be formalising our meetings with the club after their board meetings. We’ve been talking about better and more open comms for some time, and now you’ll be seeing them in action!
On their way – key dates for your diary
An exciting events programme for the coming season is in the process of being finalised, too. Look out for news – it’s going to be a busy calendar. Members get priority notice and discounts for many of our events, so that’s yet another reason to join the Trust!
Welcome to our new LTST Charity Partner for seasons 2026/27 and 2027/28
We asked Trust members to select from an outstanding choice of six local charities, all of which do amazing work in and around the Luton and Bedfordshire area. All of them attracted strong responses – and the one which came out top was East Anglian Air Ambulance:
“EAAA brings the hospital to the patients from road collisions to cardiac arrest to medical emergencies to give everyone the best possible chance of surviving and recovering. EAAA is active in Luton, responding, on average 30 times a year and in 2025, responded in Bedfordshire to 126 incidents in which 70 patients were treated. Most recently, EAAA responded to the train crash near Bedford that affected so many”
The next step is for East Anglian Air Ambulance to meet with the Trust board to talk about their aims and ambitions for the partnership. We’d also like to thank the other five wonderful charities, Luton Foodbank, Pulmonary Fibrosis Trust, Adoption Plus, Bedford MS Therapy Centre and Noah Enterprise who took part. They’re all so deserving of your support but for optimum impact, our focus is on our chosen partner for their two years. We know how generous Luton Town fans are – so please help where you can.
SoLYD – supporting youth development
More evidence of your generous support can be seen in the way fans get behind the work of SoLYD – Supporters of Luton Youth Development. The financial help SoLYD provides to the Academy enables our young players to flourish and grow on and off the pitch. And we’re seeing evidence of what that means with players like Benny Benagr – with us since he was 9! – and Jayden Luker breaking into the first team, along with a host of other emerging talents, with several making the trip to Spain with the first team squad.
Last season SoLYD donated £1,000 to the assistance fund which provides financial support for academy players, and this sum was matched by the Supporters’ Trust. A further £2,200 was donated for sweeping equipment to revive the 3G pitch – in a recent meeting with Paul Benson and Wayne Turner they both commented what a difference this has made and the huge improvement on how the pitch plays and looks.
For this season SoLYD have again given £1,000 to the assistance fund which the Supporters’ Trust have also matched. SoLYD have also purchased a Compex machine for the academy, which helps and aids quicker recovery from injuries to muscles, tendons, ligaments and breaks. SoLYD plan to finance a match abroad for U18’s or U21’s, combined with an educational visit – a valuable formative experience – and to organise one or two hospitality events for U21 fixtures in the Premier League Cup at KR. SoLYD will soon be launching an Academy Shirt sponsorship offer too – just £150 to support a young player – so look out for emails and on their social media for further news.
100% of your donations to SoLYD support our academy. It makes a real difference.
Facebook: solydluton Instagram: solyd_luton X: solyd_luton
It’s good to talk…
Talking Hatters is a regular online chat group, supported by the Trust, which aims to support anyone experiencing challenges such as stress, anxiety, depression, or loneliness—something most of us face at some point.
It’s open to all, there’s no need to be a Trust member, and the weekly Zoom sessions are held every Sunday (except when Luton Town play on a Sunday) from 7–8pm. You can connect by visiting: tinyurl.com/Talking-Hatters. It’s always good to talk, and this is a friendly, safe environment to share some quality time with fellow supporters.
STOP PRESS
Coming soon – this season’s must have garbs for the Luton Supporters’ wardrobe!
We’re about to launch a new range of LTST merchandise on the website: smart gear which supports the Trust and the club. Look out for news and get ready to strut your LTST stuff!
Why join the Trust?
As you can see, there’s a lot going on with the Trust as we aim to represent Luton fans’ hopes and dreams, questions and concerns, views and opinions through our relationship with the board as shareholders and representatives of our members.
We’re here to give you a voice and to protect the future of our club – especially important as we look forward to Power Court. These are exciting times, and when we look to the future, we do it against a background of knowing where we’ve come from and what the club has achieved.
The club needs and deserves a strong Supporters’ Trust. Join us and you’ll have a say in shaping the future – we and Hatters Heritage, whose website fees we cover, will be the fans representatives in discussing aspects of how Power Court answers your needs, and of course how we approach these precious last seasons at Kenilworth Road.
Join us today – or renew your membership
– by visiting https://www.lutontownsupporterstrust.com/membership-donate/
It’s just £10 a year, £5 for concessions. Ideally please set up a Direct Debit – a mandate is available to download and complete on our web page.
Finally, we’d like to invite you to come and talk to the Trust – and become a member if you’re not already – by dropping in on our ‘gazebo’ on the Kenilworth Road apron? We’re there for every 3pm Saturday home match, with representatives from Talking Hatters and SoLYD at most games.
In the meantime, let’s all give Jack, Chris and the boys that unique Luton Town support that can make Kenilworth Road even more of a special, magical place – today and all through the season. COYH!!
Remember – ‘The stronger the team, the stronger the team!’
