Football clubs and their communities are being supported by publicly owned operators.

Different operators are supporting people in getting to the games and encouraging young people to get involved.

Northern has announced that it will be offering a 25% discount to fans of Scarborough Athletic Football Club who have had to move 17 miles down the coast for the season while repairs to their original home ground pitch are completed.

The club expects income and attendance to be affected, and with this discount, attendees can get to matches for cheaper.

London North Eastern Railway will have a sports group meeting each month to discuss fixtures and whether there is a reason to add additional services for fans. They have previously done this most recently in July.

Southeastern has also committed itself to encouraging young people to remain active through football and is working with Sports Connect to deliver free sports sessions across Kent.

They are also working with Dartford FC, who have signpostage at Dartford station which provides information on the club and upcoming matches to aid with attendance levels.

South Western Railway have also become an official partner of Non-League Day, set up by SWR Guard, James Doe, in 2010, which encourages fans to attend non-league fixtures to support communities.

Lastly, c2c is supporting Southend communities through a partnership with Southend United. The partnership has seen them raise £17,000 for local charities through events they have held.

They have also offered a ‘Kids for £2’ advance ticket option for fans to get to football clubs.

“We know just how important this football club is to the local community so when they approached us and explained the situation, we were happy to help.”

Kerry Peters, regional director for Northern in Yorkshire