Student Season Tickets

[MarshallForEngland]

Now when i say this i am not having a go at all students but my brother in law works as a milkman (dont laugh) and every morning when he delivers milk in the town area he is met by students laying in the road cause thier that pissed, pinching his milk,abusing him cause he dare question it and this is most mornings now forgive me for saying this but if they can afford to do that most nights they can afford a fecking season ticket.

And before i get abuse i didnt say all students are like it

This is like saying "I know this is irrelevant and adds nothing to the topic but..."

You've already acknowledged that it's a daft point to make. Somebody you know has said that sometimes some people who he believes to be students act in a way which he finds distasteful. What has this got to do with the current discussion?

Allegedly one of the motives for this increase is that some people are claiming to be students when in actual fact they aren't. It is impossible to know this. If they knew for certain that somebody was fraudulently claiming student concessions then their checks are clearly sufficient and they would be able to refuse or revoke the ticket; if they didn't know that somebody was fraudulently claiming student concessions then they inherently do not know if it's a significant problem or not. Think about it; it does not make sense.

If you suspect that people are circumventing the checks, then modify and/or strengthen the checks to close the gaps. Don't piss off and alienate a large portion of existing fans, as well as their friends and families, when a third of the stadium is already empty every week. Especially when (as somebody else alluded to) there are 2 Universities in the City itself and several others in nearby cities (I travel from Derby to watch).

Will the genuine OAPs be punished for the old-looking 40 and 50 somethings who claim senior concession rates? Will the young-looking folk in their late 20s who claim under-22 tickets cause the under-22 concession to be scrapped? Will every single variable rate be scrapped because of the handful of transgressors who falsely claim to fit in a particular category?

[yorkie1999]

Our ticketing checks are a joke anyway, my niece has been going all season on her grandads ticket and my mate who's about 40 went in at the west ham game on a senior ticket, I've also heard of people getting a new ticket saying they've lost theirs then giving the old one to someone else. The real reason for cost increases is because of the lack of proper checks on the gate. What a joke, where's the swipe machines. At some clubs with swipe cards you actually have to swipe the card through a machine.

[caz05]

This is like saying "I know this is irrelevant and adds nothing to the topic but..."

You've already acknowledged that it's a daft point to make. Somebody you know has said that sometimes some people who he believes to be students act in a way which he finds distasteful. What has this got to do with the current discussion?

Allegedly one of the motives for this increase is that some people are claiming to be students when in actual fact they aren't. It is impossible to know this. If they knew for certain that somebody was fraudulently claiming student concessions then their checks are clearly sufficient and they would be able to refuse or revoke the ticket; if they didn't know that somebody was fraudulently claiming student concessions then they inherently do not know if it's a significant problem or not. Think about it; it does not make sense.

If you suspect that people are circumventing the checks, then modify and/or strengthen the checks to close the gaps. Don't piss off and alienate a large portion of existing fans, as well as their friends and families, when a third of the stadium is already empty every week. Especially when (as somebody else alluded to) there are 2 Universities in the City itself and several others in nearby cities (I travel from Derby to watch).

Will the genuine OAPs be punished for the old-looking 40 and 50 somethings who claim senior concession rates? Will the young-looking folk in their late 20s who claim under-22 tickets cause the under-22 concession to be scrapped? Will every single variable rate be scrapped because of the handful of transgressors who falsely claim to fit in a particular category?

He knows there fecking students cause its where they all live,and its not sometimes its every bloody night (or should i say morning)did you not read that.

Stop making out that the poor students are hard done by,i lost my partner last year and just because we werent married (been together 23 years)i have been left to bring mine and his kids up by myself i dont get any fecking help,i had to do longer hours and earn more i have a ST and if i want to pay the £510 for one this year guess what i have to earn more.

So forgive me if i dont feel sorry for some students that piss the night away and then moan cause they cant afford a ST,thats what it has to do with this discussion

[yorkie1999]

Simple answer is one price for everyone under sixteen , because chances are they're not going going to be paying for their ticket, and another price for everyone over sixteen, because whatever their circumstances they can have the ability to pay for their ticket.

[caz05]

Simple answer is one price for everyone under sixteen , because chances are they're not going going to be paying for their ticket, and another price for everyone over sixteen, because whatever their circumstances they can have the ability to pay for their ticket.

Good idea mate

[MarshallForEngland]

He knows there fecking students cause its where they all live,and its not sometimes its every bloody night (or should i say morning)did you not read that.

Stop making out that the poor students are hard done by,i lost my partner last year and just because we werent married (been together 23 years)i have been left to bring mine and his kids up by myself i dont get any fecking help,i had to do longer hours and earn more i have a ST and if i want to pay the £510 for one this year guess what i have to earn more.

So forgive me if i dont feel sorry for some students that piss the night away and then moan cause they cant afford a ST,thats what it has to do with this discussion

Your "evidence" is not even first hand. It's not even anecdotal. It's just you saying that somebody else said they have trouble with students. It is incredibly likely that somewhere between what actually happens and you saying what happens, lots of exaggeration and improvisation on the facts has taken place. But even if I grant you that what you are saying is 100% certainly true: so what? All you'd be left with is some students misbehaving. You appear to be saying that, as a student, I bear the guilt of their transgressions because they were also students.

Your appeal to emotion doesn't help the discussion. Needless to say your loss is very sad and not at all a source of contention for me, but concessions are not granted on emotional grounds. I am in no doubt that you are in a more financially stable condition than a significant majority of students, which is the only salient point in relation to concessionary rates. Remember that to require for the old student concession rate one had to be "full-time". Maintenance loans are between 3-4k a year (mine is at the very lowest end of this scale), and for a large proportion of students that is literally the only sum of money they get. I work weekends to eat. Some subjects have reading lists with several hundred pounds worth of books on them. Most require you to spend your own money for the mere completion of assessments. Add to that the rent and, if not in halls, bills.

As somebody else mentioned, the sharpness of the increase makes it worse. You can accommodate gradual increases over time, but some people are seeing a rise of over 200%. Ludicrous.

[Spencer]

I'm a student. One less night a week on the piss will allow me to pay for it over the course of the season.

[davieG]

It seems to me based on what's been posted in here, I haven't checked the prices but the problem stems from the Student ticket having been discounted too much in comparison with what young/non students pay it also highlights the extremely high cost of a ticket for anyone over 23 and under 65 now that it's disappeared.

I think in these circumstance the club could and should have retained the student option but reduced the discount so they were still paying more like most other fans and would then have accepted the increase with good grace and we wouldn't need to be having this debate.

There may even be an argument for phasing out Student discounts and increasing the scope of the age discount.

We could then be concentrating on real issue of general ST prices and I suspect the soon to be announced match day ticket prices.

I don't see how football clubs can play on the we're a Community Club and Your Club / Your City to improve their standing and when challenged about excessive ticket prices howl but we're a business.

[flowwolf]

Dear students please allow me a pensioner to enlighten you about the realities of life. The world does not owe you a living or even a free education after leaving school. From that point on you are on your own ( that is capitalism ) and you either sink or swim.

The majority of fans who go to the city matches are not students, they have made a decision in life to go to work and fully expect to pay for what ever they want in life. They cut their clothe according to suite , in other words if they can't afford to go to watch city then don't .

You students have made a decision to further educate yourselves in order to attain a better life style ( again capitalism ) and I salute your for that, but you have to accept the hardship of not having disposable cash for a few years until you achieve your aims.

Your not starving , you find the money to socialise , so why on earth do you expect concessions to go to a football match ?

[Lobsterboyuk]

Day release is a good option for going to uni

I earned a good whack in my student days and perfected the art of turning up to work having had 2 hours sleep and a half of shandy or two

As for the prices, they are not good value for anybody, do feel for anybody who wants to support city but can no longer afford it - but it's a problem much deeper than the student season tickets so I won't hold my breath for anything to change until the whole league fan base decides enough is enough and meaningful stuff can happen - which is probably never

[caz05]

Your "evidence" is not even first hand. It's not even anecdotal. It's just you saying that somebody else said they have trouble with students. It is incredibly likely that somewhere between what actually happens and you saying what happens, lots of exaggeration and improvisation on the facts has taken place. But even if I grant you that what you are saying is 100% certainly true: so what? All you'd be left with is some students misbehaving. You appear to be saying that, as a student, I bear the guilt of their transgressions because they were also students.

THIS IS NOT ABOUT STUDENTS MIS BEHAVING I DONT GIVE A SHIT WHAT THEY DO,MY POINT IS THE MAJORITY OF STUDENTS MOAN THEY CANT AFFORD THINGS BUT ARE ON THE LASH EVERY NIGHT.And its not exaggerated IT IS FACT

Your appeal to emotion doesn't help the discussion. Needless to say your loss is very sad and not at all a source of contention for me, but concessions are not granted on emotional grounds. I am in no doubt that you are in a more financially stable condition than a significant majority of students, which is the only salient point in relation to concessionary rates. Remember that to require for the old student concession rate one had to be "full-time". Maintenance loans are between 3-4k a year (mine is at the very lowest end of this scale), and for a large proportion of students that is literally the only sum of money they get. I work weekends to eat. Some subjects have reading lists with several hundred pounds worth of books on them. Most require you to spend your own money for the mere completion of assessments. Add to that the rent and, if not in halls, bills.

As somebody else mentioned, the sharpness of the increase makes it worse. You can accommodate gradual increases over time, but some people are seeing a rise of over 200%. Ludicrous.

[bradley_19]

i dont wanna put a downer on students but u dont deserve cheaper prices, i dont get money off my ST and im in the armed forces, i dont no how many games im gonna be missing............ is that fair?

[Langston]

I'm sure you would be a little annoyed if your ST price went up by over 200%.

I would have to pay £360 compared to £130 last season, a price I cannot afford.

Excellent calculations Mr. Student.

I do agree with the principle of your opinions though. Ridiculous increase.

[Langston]

Now when i say this i am not having a go at all students but my brother in law works as a milkman (dont laugh) and every morning when he delivers milk in the town area he is met by students laying in the road cause thier that pissed, pinching his milk,abusing him cause he dare question it and this is most mornings now forgive me for saying this but if they can afford to do that most nights they can afford a fecking season ticket.

And before i get abuse i didnt say all students are like it

Why mention it then?

[lcfc4prem]

The worst part about this news is the fact that they have probably got every single one of us where they want us! I for one am absolutely fuming about the decision BUT regardless of whether I can afford it or not I will 99.9% be likely to renew my season ticket anyway.

It's a disgusting increase but I support my club too much to not go. They know they have us anyway so they can do what they want sadly .

[Father Ted]

Next season, I will be going to university and I'm not happy that I have to pay £299. Of course there's two parts of the argument and most will say: 'how are you different to anybody else?'.

I couldn't disagree more. I will be doing a 32 hours a week Physics course + time that I will need to put in travelling to and from Loughborough ( I get the grades) and time doing extra work and studying which will leave me with no time whatsoever to get a job. So how else am I meant to pay for it? Complete joke and I don't care what anybody says, the club has fvcked up and Susan Whelan can p*ss off, doubt I will renew now unless I win a big bet or my parents just decide to pay for my Season Ticket. Thanks a lot you bellends, 10 away games this season, you've served up complete bollocks and treat your fans like this...

[Fox92]

Next season, I will be going to university and I'm not happy that I have to pay £299. Of course there's two parts of the argument and most will say: 'how are you different to anybody else?'.

I couldn't disagree more. I will be doing a 32 hours a week Physics course + time that I will need to put in travelling to and from Loughborough ( I get the grades) and time doing extra work and studying which will leave me with no time whatsoever to get a job. So how else am I meant to pay for it? Complete joke and I don't care what anybody says, the club has fvcked up and Susan Whelan can p*ss off, doubt I will renew now unless I win a big bet or my parents just decide to pay for my Season Ticket. Thanks a lot you bellends, 10 away games this season, you've served up complete bollocks and treat your fans like this...

Agree with all that, but I've ran out of +1's... I'm going to University in September as well, so I can relate to this.

[m00nie]

Next season, I will be going to university and I'm not happy that I have to pay £299. Of course there's two parts of the argument and most will say: 'how are you different to anybody else?'.

I couldn't disagree more. I will be doing a 32 hours a week Physics course + time that I will need to put in travelling to and from Loughborough ( I get the grades) and time doing extra work and studying which will leave me with no time whatsoever to get a job. So how else am I meant to pay for it? Complete joke and I don't care what anybody says, the club has fvcked up and Susan Whelan can p*ss off, doubt I will renew now unless I win a big bet or my parents just decide to pay for my Season Ticket. Thanks a lot you bellends, 10 away games this season, you've served up complete bollocks and treat your fans like this...

My daughters both seem to manage a part time job as well as study.. and if you can afford to gamble then you could afford to buy the season ticket, its not our fault you have different priorities..

[MarshallForEngland]

Dear students please allow me a pensioner to enlighten you about the realities of life. The world does not owe you a living or even a free education after leaving school. From that point on you are on your own ( that is capitalism ) and you either sink or swim.

It's a pity your age has not afforded you a higher degree of wisdom. You are confused about the definition of capitalism, but it's not something that is integral to this discussion so it's not worth debating over.

What is worth debating over, however, is your implication that students believe they are "owed a living or a free education". I don't know what evidence you have for this; I haven't been out of work since I was 15, and I worked full time for many years before I became a student, leaving a reasonably well paid job to attend. The education I get now is anything but "free". Do you have any idea what you are talking about?

I get maintenance loans delivered in three installments to my bank account, with my course fees paid directly to the university. I never see the latter, and the former does not even cover rent and bills for accommodation; forgetting the hundreds of pounds worth of books and materials that are essential for passing the course, not to mention a weekly food budget. I have been on both "sides" of the argument and I can tell you that it's the most financially difficult situation of all the ones I have been in.

Not only that, this money is given as a loan; unless I agree to cap my own wage at an excessively low amount then it clearly has to be paid back.

The majority of fans who go to the city matches are not students, they have made a decision in life to go to work and fully expect to pay for what ever they want in life. They cut their clothe according to suite , in other words if they can't afford to go to watch city then don't .

I think it's quaint that in one breath you mention capitalism, yet in the next seem to have no grasp of the relative purchasing power of different classes of consumer. First of all, the hours when I am not at University I spend at a part-time job so I can feed myself. Second of all, what do you think a student discount is? A student discount exists not as a 'reward' for somebody deciding to further their education but as a concession for somebody who is generally speaking less financially able to purchase the item in question. Of course, this means nothing to you if you believe that full-time workers and students have equal purchasing power.

You students have made a decision to further educate yourselves in order to attain a better life style ( again capitalism ) and I salute your for that, but you have to accept the hardship of not having disposable cash for a few years until you achieve your aims.

I reject your salute. You have just acknowledged that students struggle with cashflow to a greater extent than those in full-time work. So the crux of the your argument appears to be that you don't think that students should be able to buy things at prices which fall within the pale of their tighter budget?

Your not starving , you find the money to socialise , so why on earth do you expect concessions to go to a football match ?

Prize for the best false dichotomy goes to you! What a ridiculous thing to say. You're saying that the only way a student should be able to watch his football team is to abandon whatever forms of socialisation he indulges in? You have no idea what I "find the money" to do.

I find all of this quite interesting coming from somebody who identifies themselves as a "pensioner", a class of purchaser which is subject to a concessionary rate.

Should I malign the scores of retired pensioners because of the people their age who choose not to retire and instead carry on working? Would you endorse presenting them with the dichotomy of either paying full price or abandoning other areas of their lives which they can "find the money" to pay for?

[Dylan]

My daughters both seem to manage a part time job as well as study.. and if you can afford to gamble then you could afford to buy the season ticket, its not our fault you have different priorities..

I have a part-time job whilst studying (which pays fairly well compared to some other places for younger employees), but would not be able to afford £300 for a ST- which is a disgrace for students for Championship football.

Luckily, I'm still in my first year of college so will have one more season of qualifying for Under 18's prices, but once I get to Uni the year after, should things remain similar, it would be hard to find funds to get a ST with Uni costs with fees/accommodation etc...

It's a joke how they've scrapped Student prices which will hurt many people financially- loyal supporters- after they've had to endure a year of shit football/disappointment.

[m00nie]

I have a part-time job whilst studying (which pays fairly well compared to some other places for younger employees), but would not be able to afford £300 for a ST- which is a disgrace for students for Championship football.

Luckily, I'm still in my first year of college so will have one more season of qualifying for Under 18's prices, but once I get to Uni the year after, should things remain similar, it would be hard to find funds to get a ST with Uni costs with fees/accommodation etc...

It's a joke how they've scrapped Student prices which will hurt many people financially- loyal supporters- after they've had to endure a year of shit football/disappointment.

so you can afford £150 but not £300, that £150 extra.. £3 a week.. im sure if you REALLY wanted to you could find it.

its a typical case of im all right jack screw anyone else, as i dont see the students saying its unfair for a normal person having to pay a 100% rise just fort turning 18 yet wages dont go up 100% for turning 18..

notice how everyone was well happy last year when the cheap student prices came out, no one thought to say then oh wow this is a bit too cheap..

[caz05]

so you can afford £150 but not £300, that £150 extra.. £3 a week.. im sure if you REALLY wanted to you could find it.

its a typical case of im all right jack screw anyone else, as i dont see the students saying its unfair for a normal person having to pay a 100% rise just fort turning 18 yet wages dont go up 100% for turning 18..

notice how everyone was well happy last year when the cheap student prices came out, no one thought to say then oh wow this is a bit too cheap..

Well said

[MarshallForEngland]

so you can afford £150 but not £300, that £150 extra.. £3 a week.. im sure if you REALLY wanted to you could find it.

its a typical case of im all right jack screw anyone else, as i dont see the students saying its unfair for a normal person having to pay a 100% rise just fort turning 18 yet wages dont go up 100% for turning 18..

notice how everyone was well happy last year when the cheap student prices came out, no one thought to say then oh wow this is a bit too cheap..

Why do you find it difficult to believe that people fine-tune their budget to the extent that £150 is too much of an increase to incorporate? My personal budget accounts for every penny, with a small amount of leeway for unforeseen expenses. For me, a 206% increase is too big to incorporate into a budget which is already towards the very outer reaches of its limits.

Your final point made me laugh. Basically you've just said "Notice how nobody complained when they paid a fair, reduced concessionary rate. Suspicious eh?"

But your previous point made me cry. You surely realise that an 18 year old adult is able to work full time, whereas a student is not? I was in full time work and had my own flat at 18; I had the hours available to do this. Now I am a full-time student, I don't. You surely recognise the difference?

The ignorance is astounding.

Well said

False.

[Father Ted]

My daughters both seem to manage a part time job as well as study.. and if you can afford to gamble then you could afford to buy the season ticket, its not our fault you have different priorities..

Just out of interest, what courses do your daughters study? I have friends who study mickey-mouse courses, turning up for like 2 and a half days a week and have a part time job. I will be in most days from 9-5, apart from the odd hour I may have free. Thats like me saying to you that if your struggling for cash why don't you get a job at Asda at night whilst working from 9-5 in the day? I'll also have extra work and study outside of those hours...

[Leicester Lass]

Just out of interest, what courses do your daughters study? I have friends who study mickey-mouse courses, turning up for like 2 and a half days a week and have a part time job. I will be in most days from 9-5, apart from the odd hour I may have free. Thats like me saying to you that if your struggling for cash why don't you get a job at Asda at night whilst working from 9-5 in the day? I'll also have extra work and study outside of those hours...

I'm in my Fourth Year of studying Physics, and can vouch for the fact that you have no time to work on top of studying. You don't need to justify yourself to anyone.