The Community Shares Programme was a two-year action research programme that provided funding and support to 10 community organizations in the UK raising investment through community shares. These organizations included childcare nurseries, broadband services, community land trusts, and renewable energy schemes. Community shares are withdrawable shares offered in cooperative and community benefit societies. They allow members to withdraw their investment subject to fair terms, are democratically controlled, and limit individual shareholdings. Between 2009-2011, 115 new societies registered and over £5 million was raised through community share offers. Challenges in applying this model of community ownership to football clubs include whether supporters can afford capital and operating costs long-term and maintain competitiveness without outside investment.

2. Community Shares Programme
Two-year action research programme, funded by Cabinet Office &
DCLG, delivered by DTA and Co-operatives UK, working with 10
organisations raising community investment completed April 2011:
• Ashington Minors – childcare nursery
• Cybermoor – rural broadband services
• Brixton Green – community land trust and urban regeneration
• FC United of Manchester – building new stadium
• Hastings Pier & White Rock Trust – development trust
• Hurst Green Village Shop & Centre
• Oxford Cycle Workshop Training
• Sheffield Renewables – urban renewable energy schemes
• Slaithwaite Co-operative – community-owned greengrocers
• Tutbury Eco Power – renewable hydro energy

3. What’s wrong with football finance?
• Football dominated by the wealthy few who are not constrained by
financial fundamentals
• Revenue spending far outstrips revenue income
• Lack of equity capital and too much loan capital
• Loan capital is expensive, short term and places control in the
hands of the lender
• Clubs are stripped of their physical assets (land, property) and
loaded with intangible assets (players, brand)
• Some stakeholders (star players, star managers, agents and some
owners) are extracting huge fortunes from the game
• Meanwhile, fans pay the price directly (match day), or indirectly
(media subscriptions)

4. A call for financial fundamentalism?
• Clubs must be profitable – income exceeds
spending
• Clubs must be solvent - equity and reserves
exceeds debt
• Finances must be fair to all stakeholders across
the whole sector
• Finances must be transparent
• Replace speculation with real value-added

5. What are community shares?
• Community shares is the term used for withdrawable shares in
co-operative and community benefit societies.
• Withdrawable shares can be withdrawn from the society when
members need their money back, subject to fair terms and
conditions of withdrawal set by the society.
• Withdrawable shares are not subject to stock market
speculation or capital gain
• Withdrawable shares are democratic, one-member-one vote,
not one-share-one-vote
• There is a limit of £20,000 on individual shareholdings to
prevent wealthier members having undue influence

6. Planning for withdrawals
Societies must plan for future withdrawal of share
capital by replacing it with:
• Retained profits
• Reinvestment of interest by existing members
• Investment by new members
• Additional investment by existing members

7. Community shares 2009-11
• 115 new societies registered
– (66 community benefit societies, 49 co-ops)
• 43 community share offers
• 32 share offers completed
• £5.74m raised from 6,164 members
• Average raised £179,000 (median £85,000)
• Average membership 192 (median 151)
• Average investment £930 (median £180)

8. Community share society registrations
100
90 Projected
total 2011
80
70
60
50
40
30
20
Jan- Jun 2011
10
0
2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011

9. Community share societies
Post 2009 Pre 2009
Trade sector Members Share capital
societies societies
Renewable energy 34 13 8,831 £15,304,000
Community shops 20 9 2,492 £903,000
Community regeneration 14 9 3,041 £1,908,000
Food & farming 18 4 10,228 £1,171,000
Consumer co-operatives - 20 8,553,000 £191,275,000
Pubs and brewing 10 2 687 £733,000
Community finance 1 9 1.837 £2,114,000
Community land trusts 7 2 318 £25,000
Fair trade 2 1 9,222 £26,151,000
Other 9 9 38,530 £7,345,000
Totals 115 (27) 78 (75) 8,629,000 £247m

10. Challenges facing community-owned
football
• Will supporters ever have the right to buy clubs at a
fair price under reasonable circumstances?
• Can supporters really afford to provide both capital
and revenue?
• Can supporters improve profits in other ways, as
volunteers, season ticket holders, recruiters of new
members, providers of expert skills?
• How will supporters feel if their club is not competitive
on the pitch? Can clubs survive without rich patrons?

11. Further information
Community Shares website: www.communityshares.org.uk
Publications
• Community Shares Factsheets
• Community Investment using IPS legislation
• The Community Shares Programme: One Year On
• Guide to governance and offer documents
• Investing in community shares
• A practitioner’s guide to community shares (published today)
Further contact:
www.bakerbrown.co.uk
Jim.brown@bakerbrown.co.uk