The Red Imps Community Trust now has a permanent and weather-proof home to promote its activities from, thanks to Lindum Group’s donation of a purpose-built pod in the University of Lincoln Fan Village at the LNER Stadium.
The new facility replaces the gazebo and trestle table previously used by the trust on matchdays to champion its close working with Lincoln City to maintain and develop community involvement and ownership.Fans can buy team sheets, football-related books and collectible programmes from the pod, enter competitions and meet ex-players and managers on match days and during community events.There are also plans to display club memorabilia from the trust’s archives, offer book swaps and make the pod available for other fans groups to use.Lindum is currently on site at the stadium building a new Skills and Education Hub for the Lincoln City Foundation, a stand-alone charity which uses the brand and reach of the club to deliver projects that improve the local community. People can make donations to the foundation at The Red Imps Community Trust’s new pod.Herman Kok, Lindum Company Secretary, arranged for the donation of The Red Imps Community Trust Pod as part of our ongoing support for Lincoln City, which also includes signing up as one of the club’s official partners.Having been approached by the trust to see if we could supply a cabin, Herman suggested that a prototype stall made by our Lindum Joinery workshop as part of its preparation for work at the city’s new Cornhill Market be adapted to make the pod.The surplus structure was repurposed to make a box, which was assembled on site by our BMS Division and cladded by another of our divisions, KGM Roofing.Rob Bradley, chairman of the Red Imps Community Trust and elected supporters’ director of LCFC, said: "We cannot thank Lindum enough – it’s unbelievably generous and the pod is so professionally made."The main benefit to us is that we can do lots more than what we could do in a windy marquee and we don’t have to assemble and disassemble everything every matchday."David Lowes, a director of Lincoln City, said: "The Red Imps Community Trust has established itself in the University of Lincoln Fan Village as it’s important the Trust, and all our supporter groups are visible and accessible for the fans.
"This pod grows their presence further and is a much improved facility from which to engage with fans. We are grateful for the support of Lindum as a club partner and for providing the pod which is a great addition to the Fan Village."Fan Ian Hodgson, a member of the board of the community trust, said the pod is a vast improvement on its previous facilities.He said: "Our old gazebo was difficult to hold down in windy weather, so we are pleased to have new facilities under cover. We are really grateful to Lindum Group."The Red Imps Community Trust was set up in 2001 when the football club was in financial trouble. It is now a major shareholder in the club, raises money, organises events, acts as a liaison between the supporters and the club and has an association for former players and managers.Herman Kok, of Lindum Group, said: "The pod enables better promotion of the community trust, the social value arm of Lincoln City."It's a lot more significant when you have something of this quality rather than half a tent and a trestle table."It's been great to take something that was surplus to requirements and recycle into something useful."
For more information on how to become an official partner, please contact the commercial department by emailing commercial@theredimps.com