Business Plan: Co-operative Name: The 1895 Trust Society Limited Registered Number: 5594R Registered Office Address:

78 Maynooth Park, Maynooth, Co. Kildare Strategy Outline of Trust Background: We are a supporters trust, a democratic, non-profit organisation designed to allow Shelbourne supporters gain influence over the running of Shelbourne Football Club and connect the club with the wider community. Supporters Direct Europe, a non-governmental body responsible for helping fans to gain influence at their football clubs, advocates establishing a Supporters Trust as a co-op, and we have done so, registering with the Registrar of Friendly Societies through ICOS (Irish Co-Operative Organisation Society). There have been several public meetings in relation to the formation of the trust. Our initial meeting was attended by over 50 people, including TDs, a Senator and the Lord Mayor of Dublin. Our launch meeting was attended by over 70 people and we now have over 100 members. Aims: - To ensure responsible stewardship of the history and traditions of Shelbourne FC. - To protect and promote the ethos of volunteering at Shelbourne FC. - To take a caring and positive role in promoting the needs and interests of Shelbourne FC supporters and the wider communities the club serves. - To work towards a mutually fan-owned Shelbourne FC. - To work towards securing a permanent and appropriate home for Shelbourne FC, in line with the traditions of the club and the democratic will of the fans. - To unite all Shelbourne supporters in pursuit of these aims. Strengths: Legal: The Trust allows fans to collectively own assets such as shares or property. This is something unique at the club and means that fans can now look to become involved in ownership structures of either the club itself or assets associated with the club. It can also hire staff, enter into contracts and do a number of other things necessary to run and own a club. These benefits have been communicated well to the membership through using examples such as AFC Wimbledon or Cork City F.C. Organisational: Transparency and governance are important issues to fans, and the co-operative models strengths, as well as the Trusts dedication to using best practice in the field, have meant people Trust in the Trust. The Trusts nature also means it requires a constant renewal of people involved. Values: The act of setting up a trust means people have to work together and apply all of their different skills, setting the tone for all of the other work it does. This also requires constant communication about the direction of the organization, so that people feel empowered to get involved.

Weaknesses: Confusion over intent: There has been some confusion over what the Trust has been set up to do, with many fans expressing concern that it is our intention to change the name of the club or set up a new club. This is a communications challenge which we will need to overcome, by emphasizing that we want to protect the traditions of the club, are not willing to take any shortcuts to do so and will have to act with the approval of members on major decisions. Demographics: Whilst the Trust has had a great deal of success with its online communications, building large followings on social media sites and keeping people informed about what the Trust is trying to do, there does seem to be a demographic gap at play, with the majority of our membership coming from younger sections of the Shelbourne fanbase. In order to reach out to all of our fans, a serious offline communications strategy will have to be devised. Doubts over membership structure: Although the Trust has raised a considerable amount through fundraisers, memberships and merchandise, many of our new members have already expressed their desire to donate more through a direct debit scheme of some description. The acting committee has taken the view that this is not to be pursued for the moment, as accumulating extra funds without a clear purpose for how they will be directed will rightly lead to questions over what it is to be used for. Instead the Trust is aiming to explore what assets or initiatives could be invested in to aid the overall sustainability of the football club. Membership funds will be used in the development of these plans, e.g., for the hiring of consultants or legal expertise. Financing: Co-operatives have many benefits, including equality of membership and mutual ownership. However they cannot borrow money or raise capital as easily as limited companies. The Trust is aiming to surmount this difficulty by looking at best practice within the Supporters Trust movement and the wider cooperative and mutuals movement, having already engaged with the likes of FC United of Manchester, whose Community Share scheme has raised over 1.8 million thus far. Proposed activity plan for rest of 2013 season: End of February 2013: Registration of trust constitution with ICOS. 2nd/3rd week in March 2013: Launch event. March/April/May 2013: Registration drive: Over 100 members recruited by AGM. May 2013: Fan survey June 2013: Launch of results of fans survey

August 2013: Charity partnership October 2013: End of season special general meeting. Management Details: The Trust is governed by a Committee of Management. According to our rules the committee is responsible for the control of all business carried on by or on account of the Society. The committee is elected at the Trusts Annual General Meeting with one third of the committee retiring at each AGM, although retiring members are eligible for re-election. Which third of the committee will retire first will be confirmed upon the completion of the first AGM. Preliminary Roles and Responsibilities: In order to prepare for elections and the formative operations of the Trust, the acting Committee has prepared a preliminary description of the roles and responsibilities Committee members will be expected to take on. They are as follows: Chairperson - Chairing Committee meetings and General members meetings - Act as the public face of the Committee of Management. - Use their casting vote at Committee meetings and AGMs. - Must delegate but be prepared to take responsibility where appropriate . Qualifications: Experience of chairing and facilitating meetings Ability to work with different groups and interests, listen to their concerns and chart a plan of action. Excellent communication skills Secretary - To ensure that the company complies with the law and observes its own regulations, by fulfilling: Statutory duties; Duty of disclosure; Duty to exercise due care, skill and diligence, and Administrative duties, including: - To organise and issue timely notice for the AGM and to include all required documentation with the notice - To take, prepare, amend and store minutes from all Committee meetings as well as General Meetings and the AGM of the Trust - To maintain all legally required registers - To ensure that all required policies and procedures are in place, are fully implemented, and are monitored and evaluated on an annual basis - To protect members interests and see that the Trusts constitution is adhered to at all times - To seek outside help if any concerns are raised

- To send all rules changes and other relevant decisions made at members meetings, to the Register of Friendly Societies. - To deal with all correspondence to the Trust - To ensure the Trusts directors retire and that that new directors are elected on an annual basis in accordance with the relevant legal requirements Qualifications: Experience in note taking and administration Detailed understanding of the responsibilities of a secretary under Company Law Attention to detail, particularly in written communication Familiarity with Company Law in relation to co-operative societies

Financial Officer - Ensure that members are kept informed of the financial situation of the Trust - Approval of expense payments and authorised cheque signatory - Oversight of the Trusts financial assets including bank accounts - Prepare and present financial reports, including a Cash Flow Forecast, to the Committee of Management on a monthly or quarterly (as required) - Prepare and present financial reports at general members meetings and the AGM Qualifications: Education in accountancy or financial management Experience of producing Cash Flow Forecasts, managing cashflows and bank accounts Budgeting experience

Membership and Volunteering Officer -Manages the Trusts Online and Offline membership systems, working with the secretary to maintain an accurate record of membership. -Manages this record of members in a responsible manner and in line with data protection guidelines. -Responsible for membership drives and recruitment, working with the PRO on these initiatives. -Sources and manages volunteers for Trust activities in line with the Trusts policies and in line with legal guidelines and regulations, with special regard to Child Protection and Garda Vetting. - Responsible for the formulation, implementation and monitoring of the Trusts Child Protection policies. Qualifications: Ability to manage records in an accurate manner Experience in assessing skill sets and managing volunteers Management, co-ordination and communication skills

Fundraising Officer

-Responsible for sourcing ideas for fundraising and ensuring their successful execution, subject to Committee of Management approval. -Works with the treasurer to plan and execute events in order to maximise profits for the Trust from fundraising activities Qualifications: Background in marketing/charitable fundraising Event management experience Community Officer -Responsible for acting as a liaison between the Trust, the board of the Shelbourne FC football club, and other groups within the Shelbourne FC community (under age section, fans groups, etc.) -Also responsible for any charitable or community based initiatives undertaken by the Trust. Qualifications: Detailed understanding of the Shelbourne FC community and the groups and organisations within it Experience in community based work such as coaching, education and charitable activities Communications Officer -Responsible for communications with members, other trusts and the general public. -Writes press releases, membership updates and content for social media and the Trusts website. -Acting as spokesperson for the Trust in media outlets. Qualifications: Excellent written and verbal communication skills Background in media and/or public relations Contacts within local and national press Co-Option: Should a skills gap arise within the committee, additional committee members may be co-opted on, subject to an advertisement of the vacancy, an invitation for expressions of interest and a formal interview. Any co-opted members must retire at the next AGM, but will be eligible for re-election. Financial Overview income, expenses, overheads, cash flow, future projections Income: There are three main sources of income which we have utilized thus far; Membership fees: Our membership fee is not fixed. The minimum level has been set at 15 per member, the same price as a ticket for a Shelbourne FC games. This is to reflect the inclusive nature of the Trust, to encourage involvement and maximize membership numbers. The suggested contribution is 50. People can pay

above that amount if they wish, in order to further our activities, whilst receiving an equal say in the running of the Trust. By early April 2013, we had recruited over 100 members with an average contribution of 40 thus far. Our target for the season is 200. It is our hope and intention to further increase the membership of the Trust in future years. Fundraising: The Trust will engage in certain fundraising activity. This can include but is not limited to raffles, benefit nights, collections etc. Merchandise: The Trust will raise funds through sale of merchandise. Merchandise will be not compete directly with team kit or other official merchandise sold by the club. The Trust sold an initial quantity of 100 badges displaying the Trusts logo. A further badge order has been placed. Other merchandise ideas include tshirts, stickers etc. Expenses: The Trust will incur expenditure on items including but not limited to professional fees (including audit, legal advice etc.), communications (including website and mailing costs etc.), sponsorship, donations, event costs etc. It is anticipated that future expenditure will include costs relating to the longer term aims of the Trust such as procurement of strategic assets for the benefit or use of Shelbourne Football Club and taking an ownership interest in Shelbourne Football Club. Overheads: It is not anticipated that the Trust will incur significant overheads. The Trust will not seek to own or lease any premises in the short-term, instead relying on Committee members to provide a registered office for the Trust and making use of facilities at Tolka Park and other locations as necessary. Books and Records: The books and records of the Trust will be maintained under the oversight of the Financial Officer in accordance with relevant legal and statutory guidance. The Trust will produce financial statements on an annual basis and will file audited financial statements and other regulatory submissions with the Companies Office. The Trust will appoint an independent auditor on an annual basis at an Annual General Meeting. Financial Projections: The financial projections of the Trust are as below. The projections are based on certain assumptions. The projections do not include potential additional revenue and costs in respect of procurement of strategic assets or ownership interests due to uncertainty.

2013 Income Membershi ps: Interest income: Fundraising : Merchandis e: 5,10 0.00 25.50 6 00.00 6 00.00 6,32 5.50 Expenditur e Cost of merchandise Professional fees Communications Event costs Sponsorshi p Sundry 3 50.00 1,00 0.00 5 00.00 5 00.00 3 00.00 1,00 0.00 3,65 0.00 2,67 5.50

2014

2015

2016

2017

6,69 3.75 33.47 7 00.00 7 50.00 8,17 7.22

8,43 4.13 42.17 8 00.00 9 37.50 10,21 3.80

10,33 1.80 51.66 9 00.00 1,17 1.88 12,45 5.34

12,39 8.16 61.99 1,00 0.00 1,46 4.84 14,92 5.00

4 37.50 1,50 0.00 5 00.00 1,00 0.00 1,00 0.00 1,25 0.00 5,68 7.50 2,48 9.72

5 46.88 1,50 0.00 5 00.00 1,00 0.00 1,00 0.00 1,56 2.50 6,10 9.38 4,10 4.42

6 83.59 1,50 0.00 5 00.00 1,00 0.00 1,00 0.00 1,95 3.13 6,63 6.72 5,81 8.62

8 54.49 1,50 0.00 5 00.00 1,00 0.00 1,00 0.00 2,44 1.41 7,29 5.90 7,62 9.10

Surplus

Income Statement
1895 Trust 01/01/13 - 26/04/13 Revenue
Membership Subscriptions Online Subscriptions Fundraising Merchandising Net Revenue 2332 1410 550 279 4571

Cost of Revenue
Online Subscription Fees Merchandising Cost of Goods Sold Gross Profit (Loss) 77 188 265 4306

Expenses
ICOS Registration CRO Registration MyClub Finances Registration MyClub Finances Annual Fee Bank Charges Printing Promotions & Marketing Postage Administration Audit Fee (Due) 492 100 100 100 5 56 81 69 25 1230

Total Expenses Net Operating Income

2258 2048