The time to invest is now!
Big Bath City Bid
We are now in the final few days of the Bid and 25% of the target has been raised so far (at the time of writing 25/8/15), but the hard work must continue until Sept 4th. In 2003 it took fans a whole year to raise this amount of money but this time around it’s only taken 3 months.
It was never an ideal deadline but it was the only one available to the Supporters Society at the time. The Society had actually been pushing for Community Ownership since 2010 but the board only recognised it as an option back in April 2015.
There are various Bid articles already on this site but the core information can be found on their website.
So if you believe in the Bid, please apply for your shares now – there’s nothing to be gained by waiting. If you’re not quite sure, here are six reasons to apply for your shares today:
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- Clear the Debts
The Club is carrying debts that have to be cleared both in the short term and more still at the end of the season. If the Bid doesn’t succeed, the current Board will have to find a way to find new funds, with the serious possibility of selling the ground and down-scaling.
- Clear the Debts
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- Have Your Say
This is your chance to affect the running and the future of the club. As a member of the community benefit society it’s one member, one vote, but that can only happen if we have the funds to convert.
- Have Your Say
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- Reinvigorate the Club
A member run society will bring new energy and expertise into its running. Imagine if all the effort that’s been focused on raising funds for the Bid was now focused on attracting more people to the ground and more commercial revenue?
- Reinvigorate the Club
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- Do More for the Community
Becoming a community club can have far-reaching benefits for the less privileged citizens of the city. We will have a board member dedicated to the community, focussed on expanding the reach of the Foundation, opening up our facilities to local groups and welcoming more disabled and isolated people to matches every week.
- Do More for the Community
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- Get Benefits for Yourself
You can enjoy benefits for yourself or business. If you invest upwards of £500 you will be listed on our Roll of Honour at the ground; £1000+ and you receive free tickets and Society membership; £5000 will bring you life-time membership of the Society, a year’s Premier Lounge membership and a year’s dedicated seat in the stand.
- Get Benefits for Yourself
- Get 30% Tax Relief
There’s tax relief of 30% – so your investment only costs you 70% of its full value. £1000 of shares will cost just £700; £5000 is only £3500. Plus there’s the chance to earn interest and even recoup your investment in the future.
This is a once in a lifetime chance to not only secure the future of the club, but to reinvent it as one that’s run by the people of Bath for the benefit of all the people of Bath. We know not everyone has the funds available, but you if you have the means to invest, will you grasp the chance to emulate the likes of FC United of Manchester or AFC Wimbledon, or do you accept the club will continue to struggle with its debts and do whatever is necessary to clear them?