Supporters Direct Frequently Asked Questions
For many supporters, a trust is something they might have
hear about, but aren't too sure exactly what it is. Heare are some of the most
commonly asked questions.
WHAT IS A SUPPORTERS TRUST?
The basic definition of a Trust a democratic, not-for-profit organisation of
supporters, committed to strengthening the voice for supporters in the decision
making process at a club, and strengthening the links between the club and the
community it serves.
WHAT'S THE ROLE OF SUPPORTERS DIRECT?
We at Supporters Direct help fans form trusts by offering them advice on what
form it should take and how to get it off the ground and ensure that as many
people get involved as possible. Having worked with fans setting up over 40
trusts in the last year, we can advise fans on what works and what doesn't and
give examples of good ideas from other places. As the fans who get involved are
volunteers, it's important that they don't get disheartened of feel they wasted
time on something that hasn't delivered, so we help them not go up blind alleys
and instead spend their time on things that will be positive. We can also take
some of the load off their hands if we can, as we have full-time staff dedicated
to a group of clubs, and we're at the end of a phone to advise if needed.
We also pay for all the legal costs of setting up a Trust and provide small
start-up grants, to cover things like advertising, printing, and room hire and
so on.
WHY FORM A TRUST? HOW DOES IT DIFFER FROM AN INDEPENDENT
SUPPORTERS' ASSOCIATION?
We'd categorise the main difference between a Trust and, say, and ISA as
being twofold - attitudinal and Organisational.
The organisational one is easy - it's our belief that an Industrial and
Provident Society (IPS) offers the best way forward for fans groups - its legal
assets can be owned 'corporately' rather than being vested in individuals;
members have limited liability (and so do the elected officers in most cases)
and the full force of the law can be brought to bear on anyone who
misappropriate the funds. It's also a democratic not-for-profit. Finally, it
states clearly and boldly that a key aim is the securing of representation and
strengthening the links between club and community. It's got the 'big idea' that
is often needed to get stuff off the ground - the idea at the heart is "why
always be criticising, when we can be running and participating - we think we
can bring huge benefits to the club, so give us a chance - to own the club we
love (or a part of it)".
As it can own shares or property, it is a vehicle that can ultimately own the
football club, and at the very least, own a significant shareholding. It can
sign contracts with the club for shares received and set the terms of the deal -
a standard ISA unincorporated body is on much much shakier ground in that
regard. So it's robust and it can grow with you as your organisation grows. It
can ultimately 'be' a football club, and has become so in some cases - the
powers exist to employ staff, contract pensions and manage people within a
democratic structure. An IPS can be many things, and there are businesses that
are an IPS that are much much bigger than fan groups and football clubs. So it
covers the growth very well. The fans at Chesterfield were able to take
advantage of the situation by being an IPS. An ISA would have been equally
concerned about the situation, but would have struggled to actually buy the club
- just who would have bought it exactly? They would have raised money for sure,
and campaigned and wanted to secure the future of the club, but would they have
seen it as something they could and should do?
Finally, the people who get involved in a Trust as members know that their
money is protected - it can't be spent on anything other than what the
constitution says, so anyone who does can be chased through the Courts and you
can get the money back. And, as a legal entity, the trust members are only
liable for £1 if anything goes wrong - say the trust is sued for example.
But ultimately, an ISA for example could still be a Trust in the sense that
it could be an IPS and want to be on the board and so on - so here's where the
attitudinal side come in - it's about putting a professional face to the club
and saying 'we're not a bunch of raggy-arsed fans' but that we're capable,
skilled people with something to offer the club. That doesn't mean that you're
unable to criticise or beholden to the club - as a democratic organisation, the
members determine your policy and stance towards the club - but an IPS imposes
certain disciplines on a group that we think can only be a good thing -
democracy, accountability and transparency - and this can only reinforce the
points you make. Basically, it comes down to what you want a body to do. In our
view, an ISA, whilst a perfectly legitimate form of organisation, is often a
will'o'the'wisp body - it often becomes identified with a small band of
individuals and might always seems to be criticising (even if it actually isn't
in reality!). It also is limited in what it can do in terms of growth, and how
secure that growth is. A Trust, constituted as an IPS stays in existence until
its members decide to dissolve it, and so they have greater ability to stay
around - often ISAs go into a lull when key individuals become inactive. All
applicable to a Trust of course, but the disciplines we mention above make it
more likely that weaknesses are identified and rectified. For starters, the act
of becoming an IPS is a collaborative effort so you need a good team from the
off.
WHAT ABOUT THE RESPONSIBILITY ON TRUSTEES?
If you became an IPS there are no Trustees - just Committee members. Their
responsibility is limited to obeying the constitution and the will of the
members. If you do what the rules state and obey the members, and end up in
strife, it's the Trust that gets sued, not you individually as committee
members. If however committee members break the rules and things go belly up,
they can be personally liable for any damages - the claim comes from the members
who will say 'we're not covering your back when you broke the rules in the first
place' In terms of responsibility, they are merely to observe the constitution
and run a well ordered ship - which we can't see as any different from what a
good organisation should be doing. The 'statutory responsibility' is to get the
rule changes approved by the Registrar of Friendly Societies and doing annual
accounts and elections - again, something we'd hope every good organisation
would be doing.
DO YOU HAVE TO BE A SHAREHOLDER TO JOIN A TRUST?
No. The beauty of a Trust is that you get the best of both worlds. Fans who
have a small number of shares can proxy them to the trust so they are voted en
bloc and make a bigger difference. But fans who aren't shareholders can just
join, and any shares the Trust buys or gets are owned collectively by all the
members. So this is a way for people to become shareholders, along with other
fans. You bring together the fans with shares and the fans without shares, and
pool the power of both groups to everyone's benefit.
WHAT IF A SHAREHOLDING IS NOT AN IMMEDIATE POSSIBILITY?
Things change quickly in football and a Trust covers all the bases.
Chesterfield thought they were going to have a long hard slog to get a small
shareholding, and 6 days later they owned the club. Now, whilst not everybody
will have the circumstances that they had at Chesterfield (Amen to that), they
were able to act quickly and respond as the situation changed. A Trust means
that should the position regarding shares change, you're in place to respond. It
also helps build the argument to force that change by saying that you are a
constructive body, run by serious people who've got something to offer. In
effect, a Trust without shares might look a lot like an ISA - it will be
representing fans to the club, asking for changes here and changes there about
bread and butter issues - ticketing, catering, away travel etc - but it can be
much more than that. If the much more isn't there yet, then there's still no
problem. There's also more than one way to be involved. You can own property for
example, so the Trust could own the land of the club. As it's not for profit and
can only do things to benefit the club and its relationship to the community, it
can't be sold, unless the members - the fans - agree to it. Since many clubs
repeatedly state that they never want to move away from a ground unless there's
a better option for the future of the club that retains the club's link with its
community, why not makes sure that the decision as to what's in the best
interests of the club lie with the people who have it closest to heart - the
fans.
CAN MEMBERS GET THEIR OWN SHARE CERTIFICATES?
Again, different clubs have done different things. Some have printed share
certificates for members of the Trust for them to frame - Chesterfield, for
example, raised some money by doing this, as life members of the Trust got a
certificate saying that they were a permanent shareholder in the Trust, and as
the Trust owned the club, they were an owner of the club. If you are a
shareholder in the club itself, it's up to the club to provide a certificate.
HOW MANY TRUSTS HAVE SIGNIFICANT SHAREHOLDINGS AND HOW
MANY HAVE FANS REPS ON THE BOARD?
That depends on how you define significant. A 2% shareholding can be the
crucial casting vote in some cases. However, our records have 22 clubs where
supporters have a shareholding that makes them significant. At Leyton Orient for
example, they have 3000 shares - whilst dwarfed by many other shareholders at
the club, they are the largest shareholder outside the Boardroom, which is
something to be going on with and means that they have arguments ready to deploy
in their favour. As for Board representation, it depends on what criteria. There
are places where the Chairman has invited the Chairman of the Supporters Club
onto the Board - but they aren't elected onto it to represent fans as such, like
happens at say Northampton or Lincoln. It could be seen as splitting hairs,
since after all, a fan is a fan and it's better than nothing. In that light, we
say that there are 16 clubs where there is someone on the board who is there due
to their connection with fans, rather than the level of investment they have in
the club. It is growing, and as more happen, the more common it will be for
visiting Directors to meet a Director at another club who is a fan's rep rather
than a local businessman. It's noticeable that even at places where fans own the
club, you still get people criticising on message boards and muttering on the
terraces. The crucial point though is that you can get rid of them at the next
elections - with a normal owner, you're stuck with them until they decide to
sell-up.
WHY DO SOME TRUSTS AIM TO INFLUENCE THE BOARD WHILST
OTHERS SEEK TO OWN SHARES OR GET FAN DIRECTORS?
Each Trust has to look at what the situation is at their club and act in the
way most likely to produce results. At some clubs, the owner might not be up for
selling shares, so the Trust might look to get hold of the share register and
try and find other sources. At other places, the value of the club is so much
that fans are unlikely to ever have the wherewithal to get 10s of millions
together, so they look to be the bridge between the club and community and get
credit for that. As you don't have to own any shareholding to be on the Board,
it's not necessary to own a stake in the club (though it usually helps). All of
them are united in a desire to make the mechanisms for dialogue between club and
fans as solid as possible, and as entrenched as possible, so it can't be undone
should ownership or personnel change and a different group of people come in who
want to end that dialogue. And, although every club's situation is different, we
can help advise if required as to what might have worked at other clubs that
have similar situations.
DO THE FANS WHO ARE DIRECTORS MAKE A DIFFERENCE?
Well, a lot of that would be up to the skills of the Director elected, and
the respect they commanded from fellow board members. You can imagine a 'Twelve
Angry Men' situation where a Fan director makes a superb case and changes a lot
of people's minds. The key is to make sure the Director is seen as a
constructive player in the life of the club, and not someone who is simply there
to object when required. The Director should always have their feet on the
ground and be aware of fans' views - be in touch with Officers of the Trust,
fanzine editors, website webmasters and so on, so they know what the prevailing
view is. If there was uproar about an issue, the ability to represent that view
forcefully and articulately could be a big factor in the Board's decision. But
even if there was, the Director is unlikely to carry people with them if they
simply sit at the end of the table and say 'the fans won't like it'. They have
to explain why they won't like it, what the consequences will be, and how the
objectives the Board are trying to achieve could be achieved in a way the fans
would like. Equally, the Director also has the job of explaining the Board's
views to the fans.
Some people say that the fans aren't able to do this, that some random big
mouth could be elected. That's always a possibility. But we believe in
democracy, and if it's good enough to elect the Government, it's certainly good
enough to elect someone to the board of a football club. A lot of the arguments
have a familiar ring to them if you look at when people where fighting for the
vote - some said that the people couldn't be trusted, they'd elect people who
were irresponsible and so on. The truth then, as it is know, is that people
treat elections with respect in the main. Most fans look at candidates and
decide to vote for the one who'll represent them best - who's got the experience
and the skills to do the best job, rather than the biggest voice. It's a truism
that the abilities and experiences you find amongst the fans are wider and more
varied than any Board of Directors. In any group of supporters, you'll find
lawyers, accountants, media people, managers, company directors, councillors and
so on, so the people able to do the job are out there already. A trust can bring
them forward and get those skills working for the good of the club.
ARE TRUSTS USUALLY FORMED WHEN A CLUB'S IN CRISIS OR
FACING CLOSURE?
Many are, and the most spectacular successes and growth are usually at a club
in crisis, where people fear their club could become extinct. That acts as a
rallying call, and people make sacrifices that they might normally not make. But
plenty of clubs aren't in dire crisis, or even in any crisis at all at the
moment. The crisis is the 'future' - who knows what tomorrow might bring - new
owners, massive debts, the football bubble bursting. Football is an eventful
sport, and clubs rarely have a period of settled calm where nothing serious
happens to them. At these types of clubs, the Trust is an insurance policy
against that day, should it ever come. If owners change, it's there to remind
the new people that the fans love and care for the club and their interests need
to be protected and their voice listened to. They're also there to be a vehicle
to save the club should things go badly wrong, though of course no-one ever
wants to see that happening.
WHY ARE TRUSTS CONCERNED ABOUT LINKS WITH THE LOCAL
COMMUNITY, EVEN IN CASES WHERE THE CLUB IS IN CRISIS?
A lot of people look at how football has gone over the past 10 years and feel
that the community roots of a club in some places have been lost - the clubs
seems to care more about money, or sponsors, than fans who live in the area. The
classic example is a Premiership club that doesn't allow a supporters club to be
based in the area where it plays, as they assume everyone there supports them
anyway. The club represents the very best of the community it plays in, and can
act as a symbol of that community for everyone to support. Trusts are about
making that really happen. It's usually the fans who care most about these
things - they live in the community or used to live there, and they want to see
the kids in the town centre on a Saturday wearing the local club shirt rather
than a club 250 miles away.
MUST MEMBERS BE OVER 16 TO VOTE IN ELECTIONS OR MEETINGS?
As a Trust is a legal entity (under company law, it's classed as a company,
but it's a company that only allows one share per person and is not-for-profit),
minors aren't allowed to be full, voting members. But you can have a young fans'
section which has representation on the Trust committee, and young fans can join
- you can create a category called 'associate membership' for example, which is
cheaper, which means young fans can do everything except vote at the AGM and in
the elections. But your youth section can have votes itself, and the Trust can
take that on board in its own decisions. At Chesterfield, their young fans'
section was set up expressly to bring out the next generation of leaders of the
club - the people who would be running it in 10-20 years time.
HOW MUCH DOES IT COST TO BECOME A MEMBER?
That's something for each trust to decide. We won't work with a group that
sets a subscription rate that we think is too high and will stop some fans
joining. But ultimately, you have a to set a subscription rate that at least
covers the admin costs. As a basic rule of thumb, we recommend that it should
cost no more than the average price to attend a home match, but with prices as
they are at some clubs, that could be as high as £30, so we'd recommend a
smaller sum to get as many members as possible, as that can bring strength in
itself, by virtue of having a lot of supporters represented. Those who can
afford to contribute more still can through fundraising, but anyone should be
able to afford to join.
WHAT LESSONS HAVE BEEN LEARNT FROM TRUSTS YOU'VE BEEN
INVOLVED IN SO FAR?
It's important to be realistic, to be professional in your dealings, to be
committed to the democratic nature of the Trust. It's hard work for the people
involved, but Trusts always bring new people forward who might not have been
involved in anything like this before. It's got a big idea - instead of
criticising, it's about rolling up your sleeves and becoming a part of the
process and ultimately, about owning the club and safeguarding it forever. And
there's so much goodwill between fans involved at Trusts - everyone shares the
same dream for their club, and is only too willing to assist fans at other clubs
if they can help - what divides us as fans is far less that what unites us, and
Supporters Trusts and the help they give each other is a testament to that.
