Some of you may have recently heard reference to the BWFCST having set up a Community Interest Company (CIC). The CIC has been registered under the name “Bolton Wanderers Supporters Community Interest Company” and was incorporated and registered at Companies House on 09 October 2018.

A community interest company is a specific type of company introduced by the UK government in 2005 under the Companies (Audit, Investigations and Community Enterprise) Act 2004 . A CIC is a business with primary social objectives to achieve public good. In our case we set up BW Supporters CIC to provide benefit to the supporters of BWFC, it's employees, the volunteers who work for it, the entities who trade with it, other football clubs who play against it and the inhabitants of Bolton and it's environs generally. It will be owned by shareholders, whose holding will reflect contribution, with the specific purpose of acting as a fund raising vehicle. The BW Supporters CIC would not be aimed solely or primarily at maximising profit like an ordinary company. Statutory reporting requirements include an annual CIC report prepared by the directors to show how the CIC is still satisfying the community interest test and it is policed by the CIC Regulator. The benefits of a CIC can be viewed in more detail here.

We are happy to accept Mr Anderson's recent invitation to meet with all the members of the trust and we will happily explain the rationale we have behind establishing the community interest company. We will also discuss how we can work together to help secure the future of BWFC in both the short and longer term.

If Mr Anderson can avoid the possibility of administration, we sincerely hope that he will use the opportunity to engage in a structured dialogue with the BWFC supporters, all of whom have a vested interest in having something to shout about each week.

As we stated over recent days, we are still looking to engage with Mr Anderson and would therefore ask him to confirm when he is available to meet.

BWFCST Board
07 December 2018