Author: Mike Day

Neil Berry Joins as Treasurer

Posted by Mike Day on

City Fans United are pleased to announce that Neil Berry has been co-opted to the Board of Directors as Treasurer.

Neil is a recently retired Chartered Accountant, having spent over 30 years working in management positions within the financial services industry, his last role being Financial Controller at M&S Bank.

Neil has been a Chester FC supporter since 1979, and has been a CFU member and loan note sponsor since the club reformed in 2010, as well as being a Season Ticket Holder.

Neil will be replacing Matt Dickenson as Treasurer. Matt is relinquishing the role but remaining a part of the CFU Board to support the Directors with their respective portfolios.

Welcome Neil!

Senior Blues Launch Fundraiser

Posted by Mike Day on

Since our formation, the Senior Blues have pledged support to Chester FC’s Academy, raising almost £30,000 in just over 10 years.

Recognising the need for additional funding for maintenance and infrastructure projects throughout the club, the Senior Blues have recently decided to extend their support to some of these aspects. This has included purchasing new chairs for the boardroom, amongst other initiatives.

Inspired by a recent Senior Blues Meeting where Nick Phillipson, CFU Director of Facilities, spoke of the continual spend on upkeep of the stadium, the Senior Blues have this week announced a fundraiser to replace existing goal nets.

Replacing the nets is a priority requirement for the club, and at a cost of around £700, the Senior Blues felt that this was an area in which they could provide further assistance.

The group are now extending this fundraiser to the wider fanbase, asking that fans donate a minimum of £10 to fund this project.

Should the fundraiser raise in excess of our target, the Senior Blues will ascertain the most pressing smaller infrastructural requirements and reserve any surplus funds for the designated purpose.

If you want to donate to the scheme then please transfer money using the details below:-

Account Name: Chester City Supporters Society
Sort Code: 08-92-99
Bank Account: 65070431
Reference: NET

In what is an outstanding season on the pitch, the Senior Blues ask that supporters back the Club in this way to help us continue our progress as a fan owned club.

Our City, Our Community, Our Club.

Election to the Board of City Fans United and Chester FC

Posted by Mike Day on

The date of the AGM has already been published and I now formally confirm that it will be Thursday 3rd November 2022 at 7.30pm in The Blues Bar.  I am writing to all our members to invite them to stand for election to the Board of City Fans United and Chester Football Club.  Due to a resignation since last year and expiry of tenure there will be a total of four vacancies, to bring our numbers back up to our normal Board of eleven.

If you would like to meet with a director, please let me know as soon as possible and I will make the necessary arrangements for this to happen.

If elected, you will have the opportunity to contribute to the future success and on-going development of Chester FC and City Fans United; you will normally serve as a Director for a period of three years before standing down or being re-elected.  More information about the role of a director is attached.

To be eligible to stand for election, you must be 18 years of age or over and must have been a member of City Fans United for at least 60 days prior to the closing date for nomination which is 21st September 2022.  This means that you must have been a fully paid up member by 23rd July 2022.  The same eligibility rule applies if you are nominating someone to stand for the board.

Linked below you will find a nomination form should you wish to put yourself forward for one of the vacant board positions.  You should complete the form and also obtain two nominations from other members of City Fans United (a current member of the Board cannot be a nominee).  The nominations can take the form of a signature on your application form, or can be provided separately by email in support of your application if you are unable to obtain a physical signature from your sponsor.

You have the opportunity to write a manifesto of not less than 400 words and up to a maximum of 800 words.  The manifesto should be set out based on the template linked below and used to sell the skills and expertise that you can bring to the board.  You should also include a passport size photograph of yourself which can be circulated to members along with your manifesto.  There will be no campaigning other than circulation of the manifestos: this includes self-promotion of any form including use of social media.  Full details of the election policy are included on the CFU website and you must abide by the rules for the conduct of elections set out in the policy.  In the event that we have more applications than places available, an election will be held and members will use this information to elect candidates of their choice to the board.

If elected you will be required to complete a criminal record check and the FA Owners’ & Directors Test’; the requirements relating to this may be viewed at www.thefa.com.  This test is broadly similar to our requirements of board members:

·      You must not be a disqualified director

·      You must not be subject to a bankruptcy order or have an Individual           Voluntary Arrangement in place with creditors.

·      You must not have any unspent criminal convictions.

Nominations with your manifesto should be returned to me at the Deva Stadium (registered office), Bumpers Lane, Chester CH1 4LT and marked “Private and in Confidence” or emailed to me at chris.robson@chesterfc.com , to arrive no later than 4pm on Wednesday 21st September 2022.

If you have any questions on the election process or on board membership in general, please contact me via email address or telephone 01244 371376.

Finally, on behalf of the board, thank you for your continued support.

Yours sincerely

Christine R Robson

Secretary, Chester City Supporters’ Society    

Document Links:

Duties of a Director
Manifesto Template
Nomination Form

Stuart Murphy – statement from City Fans United board

Posted by Mike Day on

Following a thorough review, we can confirm that no commitments remain outstanding, and that matters have now been resolved to the satisfaction of both parties. We again thank Mr Murphy for all his considerable financial assistance over the last two years, and wish him well with his 1885 Sporting Village project.

Elections to CFU Board 2020

Posted by Mike Day on

City Fans United members who believe they can contribute to the future success of Chester FC are being encouraged to put themselves forward as candidates for the board.

City Fans United is the supporters’ group which owns Chester FC and any member can stand for election provided they are aged 18 or over and have been a fully paid up member since 8th July 2020.

Directors normally serve for a period of three years before standing down or being re-elected, and if elected you will have the opportunity to play a key role in the ongoing development of Chester FC and City Fans United.

This year’s AGM is being held on Thursday 22nd October 2020 and there are seven vacancies on the board to return it to its normal number of 10 due to resignations since last year and expiry of tenure.

The deadline for nominations has been extended to Monday 14th September 2020. The board agreed to the extension after learning some communications to members were undelivered so as to ensure everyone who is eligible is given adequate time to consider and submit an application if they are interested.

Andrew Morris, Chairman of City Fans United and Chester FC, said: “Serving on the board of our football club is a real privilege and a hugely rewarding experience.

“It does require a significant amount of time and energy so it is vital prospective candidates understand the role and responsibilities of a director, however we would encourage any member who feels they have the ideas, enthusiasm and drive to help our club succeed to put themselves forward.

“Our club is having to navigate through unparalleled challenges but there is a great deal to be positive about and many reasons to be optimistic about the future, and it is critical we have a skilled, diverse and committed board to take us forward.”

More information about the role of a director can be found here (https://cityfansunited.com/docs/Duties-of-a-Director-2020.pdf) and any members who would like to speak with a current board member to understand more about the role can email chris.robson@chesterfc.com to arrange this.

If you wish to put yourself forward for election, you will need to complete the nomination form found here (https://cityfansunited.com/docs/Nomination-form-2020.pdf) and obtain two nominations from other members of City Fans United. These can take the form of a signature on your application form or can be provided separately by email if you are unable to obtain a signature.

You have the opportunity to write a manifesto of not less than 400 words and up to a maximum of 800 words, setting out the skills and expertise you can bring to the board. This can be submitted using the template found here (https://cityfansunited.com/docs/Manifesto-template-2020.pdf) and you should also include a passport size photograph of yourself.

Please note there will be no campaigning other than circulation of the manifestos: this includes self-promotion of any form including use of social media. Full details of the election policy are included on the CFU website and you must abide by the rules for the conduct of elections set out in the policy. In the event there are more applications than places available, an election will be held and members will use this information to elect candidates of their choice to the board.If elected you will be required to complete a criminal record check and the FA Owners’ & Directors Test’; the requirements relating to this may be viewed at www.thefa.com. This test is broadly similar to our requirements of board members:

  • You must not be a disqualified director
  • You must not be subject to a bankruptcy order or have an Individual Voluntary Arrangement in place with creditors.
  • You must not have any unspent criminal convictions.

Nominations with your manifesto should be returned to City Fans United secretary Christine Robson at Deva Stadium, Bumpers Lane, Chester CH1 4LT and marked ‘Private and in Confidence’ or emailed to  chris.robson@chesterfc.com, to arrive no later than 4pm on Monday 14th September 2020.

CFU Board Statement

Posted by Mike Day on

The Board of City Fans United can confirm we received notification from Stuart Murphy, on behalf of Exacta Plc, on Sunday 10th May advising his intention to end his association with the Club forthwith.

Therefore the Board wishes to advise members we consider Stuart’s approach to takeover the ownership of Chester FC to be withdrawn.

We can confirm that to date we have not received settlement of the outstanding financial commitments for the 2019/20 season, however we remain in discussion with Stuart regarding this matter.

Chester FC would like to place on record its appreciation to Stuart for his financial support and donations received since his association with the Club commenced in 2018 and we wish him well for the future.

The Board will provide further updates to members over the coming days and weeks, and is committed to fully engaging with the membership in developing a revised strategy to ensure we can overcome the challenges of the Covid-19 pandemic, continue to function sustainably and remain competitive when football returns as a 100% supporter-owned football club.

CFU Board Summary – February 2020

Posted by Mike Day on

Summary of CFU Board meeting held on 17th February 2020 in the Blues Bar

Minutes of Meeting held on 20th January 2020 were signed as a correct record. Nick Philipson and Paul McDermott were voted on the Board for a year as Non-Executive Directors.

Finance – Chris Robertson circulated to the Board a comprehensive financial update for 2019 which covered. The Club needs to be able to improve on its overall budget for the financial year, and budget holders were asked again to look at ways to save the Club money, otherwise there would be a deficit yet again.

Operations – Andy Morris had circulated a paper to the Board regarding operational matters and mentioned that all players were looking good for the match against Kings Lynn. It was also mentioned that a supporter had donated £100 towards the fund for GW’s mask. The cost of this was in the range of £800 which had been achieved. .

Safety – Steve Povey had been invited to the Board meeting to discuss potential issues regarding safety after he and MJ had been to a SAG meeting the previous week. SP had put to the Board several proposals which were all agreed on, with the exception of the west stand camera, which would be deferred to a later date,

Commercial – Paul Bodman had circulated a paper regarding updates to the Club. Had sorted quotes out for the “End of Season” party and was finalising details of which venue to go with, which would most probably be Crowne Plaza.

Fundraising – David Williams had send in a report to the Board and everything was still ongoing.

FEWG – Jeff Banks had sent a report to all Board members.

Youth Academy – MD brought to the attention of the Board an email that IS had sent regarding the remuneration package for Calum to cover his role at the Club. MD also mentioned who was on the Youth Academy Support Committee – (MD, MN, IS, BB, AD, GD and JG). MD also circulated a paper regarding the finances of the Academy and an email from IS regarding his sponsorship for the Club.

AOB – A date had been set for the next CFU Formal Meeting which would be Thursday 9th April 2020 at 7.30pm (bar open at 7pm). Meeting in Blues Bar

The next CFU AGM would be Thursday 22nd October 2020 at 7.30pm (bar open at 7pm). Meeting in Blues Bar

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