A partially-sighted football fan is touring stadiums around Scotland to raise awareness of facilities for disabled supporters.
Jon Attenborough, who was just a boy when he fell in love with football, is aiming to visit all 42 SPLF clubs with his guide dog Sam.
He has managed to tick 36 off their list so far – with every game providing a chance to improve how Scotland’s professional teams support fans with disabilities.
He told STV News: “Obviously the two big clubs Rangers and Celtic, they’ve got big 60,000 seater stadiums.
“They do accessibility really, really well and they’ve got processes in place for anyone who wants to go along, so it’s kind of a well-oiled machine.
“But smaller clubs like where we are today in East Fife, I really love coming to these kind of clubs because they’re really community-based clubs where all the staff and supporters all know each other.
“They have a bit more time to support each other with individual orientation and finding them an accessible seat.”
Catering to people’s individual needs is something the team at East Fife pride themselves for.
STV NewsIt’s a small organisation run mainly by dedicated and passionate volunteers.
They offer audio description for blind and partially-sighted football fans, with their disability officer Stephen Mill greeting people at the door.
A few years ago, a donation from the family of a supporter enabled the team to install a lift at Bayview Stadium, giving fans who need mobility support access to all areas of the stand.
Stephen says because they’re a smaller club they can offer people a more personal touch.
“We’re able to do that individual touch and I think it’s important,” he said.
“Football should be for everybody basically.
“If you have a disability, if you haven’t got a disability, if you have mobility issues and if you’re a wheelchair user.
“Everybody is welcome and we try our best to make them welcome and to meet their individual needs but the club could always do with some more funding.”
Jon wouldn’t be able to complete his challenge without his guide dog Sam.
He is among thousands of dogs that go through training to support blind and partially-sighted people.
Arlene Thomson is a trainer with the Guide Dogs in Forfar and says training starts from a young age.
“Training starts with our puppy raisers who are our amazing volunteers out in the community. And they take the dogs to things around the environment.
“So they will at very young ages take dogs to theatres, restaurants, cafes, football matches, all of these kind of things so the puppies grow up listening to these noises and being in those environments so they’re very very used to it.
“A guide dog owner should be able to go to a restaurant, go to the cinema, go to church, go to a football match the same as everyone else.
“Just because they have a visual impairment doesn’t mean they can’t live their life they way that everyone else does and our dogs allow them to do that and give them the freedom to live the life they want to.”
Throughout his journey to football stadiums across Scotland, Jon says both him and Sam have been welcomed and supported by clubs and fans across the leagues.
But the biggest issue has been using public transport.
He said: “That’s highlighted to me some of the accessibility issues within the transport system around the local stadiums.
“Most of them have been absolutely brilliant but some of the stadiums can be quite far out of the town centre.
“That’s been the most challenging part of it.”
Jon would like all football clubs to do more to promote their accessibility facilities and make it easier to contact their disability officer.
He also hopes to inspire more fans with disabilities to follow their passions.
“I received a message from another guide dog owner on Instagram who said that, because of my posts, they decided to take their dog along to their local team for the first time.
“Now the whole clubs know who they are and knows the dog and ultimately that’s what I want – more people with visual impairments or other disabilities to get involved and coming along to live matches with their local teams.”
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