For over 20 years, The Supporter's Trust has proudly owned Exeter City Football Club and has committed thousands of pounds to the wider Exeter community.
Today, we're approaching members to ask for continued commitment by voluntarily increasing existing donations and subscriptions to help curb the rate of inflation.
The Trust has donated at least £100,000 a year to Exeter City F.C. since 2003- a fantastic commitment we are committed to match and exceed season-by-season.
Latest statistics however show that £100,000 in 2003 is now worth £198,145 in today's economy.
This means that subscriptions today are worth 49.5% less than in 2003.
Part of the Ownership and Membership Working Group (OMWG) strategy set by the Trust Board is to increase subscriptions of existing Members.
Over the last 20 years, we have never asked Members to review their subscription.
Had we increased the subscription in that time, a member paying the base rate of £24 a year in September 2003, would now be paying £42.15.
In the Trust Survey 2021/22, 57.5% of those who responded said they would support an increase in membership Fees.
For clarity, the subscription will remain at £2 per month or £24 a year, and Members can increase payments by adding donations.
Currently, anything over £24 per annum is treated as a ‘donation’, and is therefore not taxable.
Why are we looking to increase subs rather than recruit Members?
As a non-profit organisation, increased donations are currently the most tax-efficient way of growing our income. We are advised that substantial increase in Memberships would automatically trigger an immediate and ongoing annual VAT liability of £18k.
Once we cross the threshold, the next 750 new Trust Members would do no more than pay the immediate VAT bill.
Every additional member would see 20% of their membership element go to HMRC.
This makes increasing the donations of existing Members the most tax-efficient way of raising money as donations- as currently everything over the membership fee £2 a month/£24 annually is not subject to VAT.
What extra support would increased subscriptions bring?
We contribute a minimum of £100,000 a year to the club as well as funding specific projects like additional funding for the purchase of the Cliff Hill Training Ground and OTR (Exeter).
We work closely with the club's charitable arm Exeter City Community Trust, which prides itself on delivering projects to improve and maintain the health of us all.
We are also highly committed to supporting the Trust's partner charity Exeter Community Initiatives which supports vulnerable people in our city.
The increase in donation appeal went out with season ticket renewals in the summer. It concentrates on asking Members to increase or add donations to the subscription fee, but also still included an appeal to season ticket holders to become members if they are not already.
Season Ticket holders will then progress up the match ticket priority chart to Gold status. Gold status giving priority for away tickets.
An increase in donations would in turn allow us to boost our income generation to increase our contribution to the Club.
It is obvious subscriptions and our contribution have not kept pace with inflation over the 20 years of majority shareholding.
How can I increase my subscription?
Increasing donations for existing members is simple and there are a few ways to do it. You can contact our Trust Membership Secretary on trust.membership@ecfc.co.uk or our Trust Secretary on trust.secretary@ecfcst.org.uk.
Existing members can also contact their bank directly to increase standing orders. Or you can go to our membership portal VeryConnect and change details there.
The Trust would like to thank all our members for their continued support over the past 21 years. It continues to be a proud and vital way to improve and develop our club at a competitive League One level. We could not have done it without you and we would not be able to wear proudly our ethos - We Own our Football Club.
Thank you, Grecians.