As we begin the move back to our spiritual home at the Old Spotted Dog, now more than ever it is important to restate that Clapton CFC is a community football club.

A big part of our community response to the current pandemic has been helping our members who are struggling financially, no questions asked, through our Hardship Fund.

When we started asking for donations, we set ourselves the goal of £5000 and it’s been heartening to see us exceed that by nearly £4000 (minus fees).

A significant boost has come from spectators who had booked tickets for the Clapton CFC men’s team game vs Cricklewood Wanderers.

After the game was postponed, all fans were given a choice of a full refund or to donate the money to the Hardship Fund.

No one has requested a refund which means £504 (minus PayPal fees) has been added to the Hardship Fund.

We continue to ask members who can afford it to support our appeal by donating, perhaps setting aside the money they would have spent watching a Clapton CFC game.

By coming together we have made a small, short-term difference to some of our members’ lives.

The average we pay out is £200 to £250 and mostly, when anyone has said why they need the money (they don’t need to, we are absolutely not making any judgements on whether someone is “worthy” or not), it has been to cover a shortfall of rent.

There will be no restriction placed on how the money is used. The idea is to provide some short-term, cashflow relief to those in most need.

We are thinking about the unemployed, those made redundant or on benefits, the self-employed, those on zero-hour contracts or freelancers who suddenly find they have a dramatically reduced income.

We suggest this guidance:

Food: £50
Bills: £100
Rent help: £200

We are also very open to ideas of other ways we as a club might help our friends and members at this time, please do email us at community@claptoncfc.co.uk if you have any suggestions.

As a club, as a community, we know this isn’t a complete solution and that we won’t be able to help everyone.

However, by coming together we can make a small, short-term difference to some of our members’ lives.

Give what you can, take what you need.
In solidarity,
CCFC

How to apply

If you need help, email finance@claptoncfc.co.uk and let us know.

The club’s Community Outreach Committee is keeping track of how much we raise and assuming there are funds, then we will ask for
your bank details and then transfer funds over.

How to donate

Donate on the GoFundMe page.