AS OUR Red Army Fund flyer states, we’re looking to “Raise the Roof” over the Stratton Bank, but that’s our ultimate long-term objective and we need many more supporters to sign up to our fundraising effort before that can become a reality.

Realistically we will need to secure additional funding from other sources to achieve our ultimate goal and we continue to investigate the opportunities that are out there.

However, it’s not all about the roof.

As well as stadium improvements, the fund (redarmyfund.co.uk) enables supporters to come together and over time raise money for things like improved facilities for disabled fans, family, school and youth football ticket promotions, fan engagement (streamers/banners and such like) and recognising our fabulous history through a club museum.

We also want to make a difference for some of the community groups out there and this week we made our first move into that area by using the Red Army Fund to supply two tickets and a stationery set gift for the the “Memory Makers” programme, which is a new project from the Swindon charity SMASH.

The programme matches children aged 9-12 with adult volunteer Memory Makers.

By meeting regularly and sharing simple and fun activities Memory Maker volunteers aim to build children’s store of positive memories and support their emotional and social development.

The tickets and the gift are very low cost, but will hopefully bring some happiness to the young beneficiary.

Ultimately a lot of our work is about getting these young kids of Swindon interested in the club, as they are the supporters of the future.

Many of the SMASH children love football and have expressed an interest in watching a professional match.

Unfortunately the normal cost of Swindon Town tickets for the children and their volunteers is too much for the charity’s limited resources and that’s where we have stepped in.

Going forwards, we’ve promised to do what we can to support the SMASH efforts by advertising their initiatives via our website and member newsletters.

They do need more volunteers (males in particular) so if you’re interested in becoming a SMASH volunteer, and would be willing to take a youngster along with you to watch a Swindon match, email admin@smashyouthproject.co.uk Your Club, Your Trust