Raith Supporters Trust AGM, 29th March 2023
Venue: online
Apologies – Apologies were received from 8 members and proxies supplied by 4 members. 19 people were in attendance, the meeting was therefore quorate.
Welcome & Introductions
Trust Chairman, Alan Russell (AR), opened the meeting and welcomed the members.
Minutes of Previous AGM
No amendments were made to the previous minutes and they were AGREED.
Review of Past Year
The review related to were the second season of Covid restrictions – 21/22 and the later part of the year after the fallout of the signing of David Goodwillie. AR noted that Trust membership had risen significantly in response to the Trust’s representation of supporters’ views on the signing. The Trust had specifically asked the club to look at a number of areas in order to re-establish trust will the supporters and the wider community, in particular:
- Rebuilding trust with the club’s volunteers
- Establishing clear roles and accountabilities at board level, a clearly defined decision-making process, and greater diversity at board level
- Ensuring a strong focus on fan engagement, by ensuring permanent democratic representation at board level for supporters
- Extending the existing arrangements for fan engagement to include a permanent ‘structured dialogue’ process
Post financial year issues at the club were discussed after the close of the AGM.
Overview of the Previous Year’s Accounts
AR highlighted the Income and Expenditure account and the Balance sheet for the 2021/22 accounts.
Membership income had increased during the second half of the year while advertising spend at the club, prior to the signing, had increased as Covid restrictions had changed. This meant there was a slightly lower retained surplus to the previous year.
The accounts for 2021/22 were AGREED by members.
It was noted the Loan Notes no longer show on the accounts having been cancelled at the time of the John Sim takeover in 2017.
Proposal for Independent Examination
The proposal to conduct an Independent Examination of the accounts was AGREED by members.
Nominations to the Board
Greig Porter and Graeme Condie (Treasurer) were standing down at this AGM. Thanks were given to both members for their involvement over the years.
Offers of support would be followed up after the AGM with a notice of the potential to be co-opted to the Trust Board, particularly in terms of the Treasurer role.
AOCB
Members were notified that the Board would look to adopt Supporters Direct Scotland’s updated Model Rules during the next year and this would be subject to member decision at the next AGM.
The meeting closed at 7.29pm
A discussion of the current position of the club and the potential for new ownership followed the end of the AGM.
In summary there were a number of comments about the operating model of the club and the sustainability of making year-on-year losses. In particular there was concern about what this meant for any new ownership and whether ownership from someone without a background of support for the club was the best way forward. Community ownership was discussed with a range of options put forward for a more stable form of ownership with the capacity to cover ongoing losses and costs that were likely to be incurred by any new owner. The Trust board will continue to develop this alternative ownership structure and operating model, and will engage with John Sim and any incoming future owners on these.
