Minutes of Trust in Yellow Members' Meeting - Thursday 24 May

Apologies from board members: Paul I, Andy K.

1. Minutes of last meeting and matters arising

None.

2. Treasurer’s Report

The Trust’s current balance is £23,076, with net funds available totalling £22,372.

Colin Aindow’s run to Grimsby Town has so far raised £1,836 for the Trust. A small profit of £13 was made on coach travel during the past season, achieving the Trust’s target of breaking even. Previous profits were used mainly to subsidise the three coaches to Grimsby.

140 of brochures marking the club’s record-breaking away wins and published in memory of Sally Devine have been sold, with another 90 sales needed to break even.

The Trust’s website domain has been renewed at a cost of £109 for the next two years.

The £10,000 in a term deposit is due to mature on 7 September.

3. Memberships

Memberships have increased steadily and currently stand at 257.

4. Sponsored run to Grimsby

Colin Aindow reported that the run to Grimsby Town on the final day of the season has raised around £2,500 for the Trust and Help for Heroes, with £150 still to be collected.

Colin was congratulated on his achievements and he thanked fans and the various football clubs he stopped at for their support. Colin received items of memorabilia from a number of clubs, which will be auctioned to raise funds for the two causes.

As a way of recognising Colin’s considerable efforts in raising funds for the Trust, he will be presented with a memento and made an honorary Trust member. He has also been invited to join the Trust board.

5. Kevin Lee

Members were informed that the Trust has been approached by Liam Watson with a view to raising funds to assist Kevin Lee over the course of the next season.

The club is looking to arrange a benefit match to help Kevin in the immediate future, but Liam thinks that generating a total of around £4,000 to make regular payments throughout the season would support Kevin in the longer-term, enabling him to pursue his coaching badges or assist the club in something like a scouting capacity.

Following the meeting with Liam, the Trust board is eager that such a project goes ahead and recognises the special bond Kevin has formed with supporters.

As raising funds for this purpose would be outside of the Trust’s remit, the board has suggested that a separate working group, which may consist of Trust members, board members and non-members, should be set up to oversee the fundraising. The project will be fully supported by the Trust.

The Trust is happy for its scheduled cricket match on 22 July to be used as a fundraiser. A donation of £100 was made at the meeting by the Taylor family.

6. Floodlights project

The floodlights project was discussed at length.

The Trust has received a response from Charlie Clapham, explaining that a need to prioritise the club’s expenditure has limited any progress with the project.

Mr Clapham has suggested that there are a number of reasons for this and has offered to meet with representatives from the Trust board at short notice. The Trust board is keen that this meeting takes place as soon as possible.

In the absence of any response from the club to recent communications, the board had asked Mr Clapham whether the club still requires the funds raised by the Trust.

The possibility of exploring other projects was discussed, but as funds have been raised specifically for this purpose, the Trust would need to follow certain procedures before pursuing any alternative.

Mr Clapham has assured the Trust that the club intends to see the floodlights project through.

Members present at the meeting wanted to remain committed to the project but were disappointed with the lack of communication from the club and clarity on how it intends to proceed.

In its correspondence to Mr Clapham, the Trust board has explained that progress with the floodlights is a major concern among members.

The board contacted the Football Foundation directly to see if any application for a grant had been submitted by the club, but was told that the Foundation could not disclose any information.

Members felt that it was a considerable achievement for the Trust to have virtually secured its share of the funds needed for the floodlights project and efforts should be made to highlight this.

A statement on the floodlights will be released by the Trust following the meeting with the club.

7. Coach Travel

The Trust board is aware of the anti-social behaviour on board one of the coaches on the way back from the match at Grimsby Town. Those apparently involved will be invited to the next board meeting to discuss the matter and their future involvement on coach trips.

Alan S and Phil C were thanked for their work in arranging coach travel over the past season.

It was asked whether the Trust had considered hiring a mini-bus or smaller coach to matches where there are insufficient bookings to run a coach. The Trust has previously made a number of enquiries, but with a similar cost for fuel, a driver and the need for two drivers on some trips, the price difference was found to be minimal.

8. Player sponsorship for next season

The Trust again intends to sponsor a player for the coming season and a decision will be made when more squad details are known.

9. Other future events

The Trust is still waiting for confirmation on whether Ainsdale Cricket Club is available for the cricket match on 22 July. Enquiries will be made with the Rookery in the event a change of venue is needed. All funds raised by the Trust on the day will be donated to the Kevin Lee appeal.

Arrangements are in the process of being made for the Programme and Memorabilia Fair.

10. AOB

The Trust was asked by Mick Seanor for help in finding a way to remember supporter Dave Ratcliff, who passed away last year.  The Trust board will liaise with the club to find an appropriate way to recognise Dave’s dedication as a supporter.

The opportunity of Q&A session with Liam Watson and possibly Charlie Clapham was discussed. The Trust will approach the club to see if arrangements can be made before the start of the season.

It was asked whether the Trust would consider any sort of marketing on the day the Olympic torch relay passes KGV College. There is apparently a prohibition on any advertising around the route and trying to make any arrangements would not be practical.

11. Next Meeting

21 June (board), 19 July (members).

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