Two areas of safe standing are in place in the Covered End Upper for Saturday's game against Shrewsbury Town as part of tests ahead of the installation of more than 1,000 safe standing places for next season.
This weekend, the back row of Block M and N in the Covered End Upper will have a safe standing rail in place for seats 204-244.
A safe standing area for 1,064 Charlton fans will be installed in the Covered End Upper for the 2024/25 campaign.
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The club's Safety Officer Mick Everett has provided the below update...
SAFE STANDING
The club were delighted to announce that, during the course of the summer break, a new safe standing area will be installed in the Covered End Upper. This new section will be across blocks G to N (excluding Block K) and will be the back eight rows throughout all of these blocks. This will give the club a safe standing area for 1,064 supporters. The seats will actually remain in situ so fans can still use them pre-match and at half-time should they wish to do so.
The club has also received provisional permission to install a safe standing area in the Covered End Lower, but this is something the club may pursue at some stage in the future, depending upon the success in the Covered End Upper.
WHY CHOOSE THE COVERED END UPPER AHEAD OF THE COVERED END LOWER?
The reasons behind erecting a safe standing area in the upper section of the stand before any other areas at The Valley is due to safety concerns raised by both the Sports Ground Safety Association (SGSA) and the local authority.
Their concerns, along with those of the club, are that the persistent standing in the Covered End Upper present a risk to safety due to a number of factors.
These factors include migration within the stands. Migration of fans to specific areas leads to overcrowding in certain areas within the upper section, despite the overall numbers elsewhere in the upper tier falling some way below its overall capacity. Stewards constantly have to do ticketing checks in this area and ask supporters to go to their correct seats elsewhere in the Covered End Upper.
This migration causes the blocking of gangways and aisleways, as too many fans stand and congregate together. The risk of injuries is also heightened by potential trips, falls and surges.
The rake (steepness) in the upper tier is 34 degrees - the steepest in the stadium - is deemed to be more of a safety risk with supporters standing as opposed to the lower section which has a 24 degree rake.
That steepness of the stand where fans persistently stand is a risk as opposed to a designated standing area where typically the rake is 23/24 degrees or lower, as in the Covered End Lower. That’s primarily the reason why the club is installing a safe standing area in the upper tier ahead of any other areas in the stadium.
Installing a safe standing area will have a positive impact on spectator safety in these blocks. The barriers will completely eliminate the possibility of forwards or backwards movement of supporters celebrating goals, and also mitigate the risk of a surge forwards that could cause injury to those in front.
The ownership of the club is investing heavily in this project, and it is therefore important that supporters are aware that if you want to stand in the Covered End Upper you can only do so in the back eight rows of the stand.
With a new safe standing area installed, the club will face reviews from the authorities in relation to persistent standing occurring in other areas of the stand. Standing in any other area in the Covered End Upper will not be acceptable, as to do so would present a very real risk to the club of having the overall capacity in the upper tier reduced by the SGSA.
Therefore if you want to stand, please purchase your season ticket or match tickets in Blocks G, H, J, L, M or N, Row OO to Row VV.
If you are thinking of purchasing tickets in the safe standing area, please remember that you will be expected to abide by a club Code of Conduct, which is set out below.
CODE OF CONDUCT
Fans in the new safe standing area should not stand on the rails or seats. This safe standing area is here to keep everyone safe.
Unless supporters need to use the concourse facilities, they should not move around in the safe standing area. Your ticket is for your space only.
Fans should not stand in the gangways or on the steps to watch the game. These areas are only for supporters to access or leave their space. They are not for watching the match from.
Fans should stand only in the space for which their ticket is valid.
Any supporters that congregate in any section of the safe standing area for which their ticket is not valid, may have their ticket cancelled without compensation.
The club reserves the right to exclude anyone who does not abide by this Code of Conduct.
