WELCOME to a new weekly feature in conjunction with the Oxford United fan groups OxVox and Oxford United Supporters’ Panel (OUSP), as we hear from them throughout the summer on all manner of U’s matters.

We’ll be getting views from the two groups on a range of subjects, including topics on and off the pitch.

Those may include the summer transfer window, hopes and ambitions for the 2023/24 season, favourite moments following United, and the ongoing stadium project.

This week, we caught up with OxVox secretary and treasurer Trevor Lambert to discuss how the group works with the community.

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Football isn’t just about winning cups, trophies, and promotions. If that were the case, fans would end up disappointed at the end of most seasons!

No, to those of us who support, it’s about fun, it’s about belonging, and it’s about local pride. It’s about shared experiences and common goals.

In truth it is about all of those things, but most importantly, and without exaggeration, it’s about community. A football club is a community that anyone can join.

If you’re not a fan and have read this far by accident, come to a match and see. If you don’t know how to go about getting tickets, just contact OxVox or the Supporters’ Panel and ask.

We’re also a community that looks out for our members. Whether it’s supporting the family of the late Joey Beauchamp and raising much-needed funds for mental health charities, fundraising for food for the Cherwell Collective in Kidlington, supporting ex-players in need, or running Zoom calls for fans during the pandemic, supporters come together in times of need.

This week, OxVox, working with the Supporters’ Panel, have set up a fundraiser to support Play It Forward, the club’s scheme to enable long-standing fans and potentially some young new ones, who may be struggling in difficult circumstances this year, to obtain season tickets.

READ MORE: Oxford United fans help those less fortunate with season tickets

A small number of fans have been able to pay the full price for a season ticket for a disadvantaged fan – that’s great, but most won’t be in a position to be so generous.

Our fundraiser allows any fan to make a small donation. In its first few days, just over £2,000 has been raised, meaning that several fans, not known to the donors, will be supported in this way.

A true community effort with fans looking after their own. If you wish to donate, visit: crowdfunder.co.uk/p/yellowsforward

A new season is approaching, with all its hopes and expectations. Liam Manning has made a great start with four really strong signings.

Off the field, a vital date approaches in September when the county council will decide whether to use the land at The Triangle near Kidlington for the new stadium.

It’s an exciting time, full of possibilities. The opportunities and potential of the new stadium for the Yellows community across Oxfordshire and beyond, and just as importantly, the benefits for the local Kidlington community, are immense.

The community will have superb facilities on their doorstep for people of all ages, regardless of their interest in football.

I’ll end with an admission. Yes, I’ve overused the word ‘community’ in this piece.

But I’ve done so to emphasise the strength of the positive commitment to a level of mutual support which goes beyond football and which I believe will be of enormous benefit to the Kidlington area in the future.

The club itself will, I am convinced, do its part.

Alongside the Community Trust (there’s that word again!), and the supporters of this integral part of Oxfordshire’s history, those who have visited one of the many presentations the club has given cannot fail to be impressed by the positive intentions they are laying out for Kidlington and the whole of the county.

I started by talking about winning. Let’s look forward and achieve some big wins, whether they take the form of promotions or the more everyday reality of more good and worthwhile projects to everyone’s benefit.