IPSWICH TOWN PLC Incorporated in England and Wales Under the Companies Act 1985 with Registered Number 04792070
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IPSWICH TOWN PLC Incorporated in England and Wales under the Companies Act 1985 with registered number 04792070 15 November 2019 Dear Shareholder Annual General Meeting of the Company on Tuesday 10 December 2019, 7.30pm at Portman Road I enclose herewith the formal notice of our Annual General Meeting together with the Annual Report and Accounts of the Company for the year ended 30 June 2019. The summary Financial Highlights of Ipswich Town Football Club Co Limited (ITFC) will be available at the AGM and will also be published in early December on the shareholder section of the Club’s website. Following discussions with the Company’s auditors, and after careful consideration, the Board has concluded that the £500,000 valuation of our shareholding in ITFC can no longer be sustained, given the Club’s relegation to League 1 and the extent of loans outstanding to Marcus Evans Group companies. Accordingly the valuation has been written down by £500,000 to nil. Mark Andrews, the Club’s Finance Director, along with representatives from auditors Ensors, will be present at the AGM to answer the questions any shareholder may have with regard to the Board’s decision. For those of you who have agreed to receive documentation in electronic form you will find all the details of the forthcoming AGM including the Annual Report and Accounts on the Club’s website which can be accessed on the following link www.itfc.co.uk/news/Financial-News/ If you have not yet opted to do so, or if you have not notified us of a change of email address, I’d be grateful if you could contact the company secretary with your details at [email protected] We will again be able to offer through the Club’s website an online voting function for all shareholders which you will be able to use as an alternative to sending your proxy form if you are unable to attend the AGM in person. Please go to the Club website link as above and follow the instructions to exercise your vote. Your unique log-in is set out below: At the Annual General Meeting two directors retiring by rotation, Richard Moore and I, will be standing for re-election: Richard Moore grew up in Ipswich and has been a fan since childhood and as a local businessman has supported the Club as a sponsor, significant shareholder and networker. He became a director of ITFC in 1995 and upon majority control passing to the Marcus Evans group in 2007 became a vice-president of the Club. Roger Finbow became a director of ITFC in 1998. A solicitor by profession, he was brought up and educated in Suffolk and since retiring from full time legal practice has served on the boards of a number of companies and charitable organisations, including, locally, the Seckford Foundation. He was appointed a Deputy Lieutenant of Suffolk earlier this year. Continued overleaf Following the resignation of Ian Milne in February, the board has also been joined by Lee O’Neill who, having been appointed during the year, comes up for election at the AGM. Lee is the Club’s General Manager of Football Operations, a role which involves oversight of the Club’s long term strategy. He was an Academy Scholar 20 years ago, following which he gained a degree in Sports Science from Loughborough University and trained as a teacher before re-joining the Club as a sports scientist and later becoming Academy Manager. I am delighted to welcome him to the Board. It is perhaps an understatement to say that the 2018/19 season was a challenging one for the Club. But the appointment of Paul Lambert just over a year ago has proved inspirational in many ways. Although Paul was unable to steer the Club away from relegation - the damage had been done earlier in the season - the manner in which he has been able to uplift the Club, and not just on the playing side, has been remarkable. As relegation became ever more inevitable we witnessed a counter-intuitive increase in support and attendances at matches so far this season have been exceptional, both home and away - a measure of the renewed enthusiasm amongst supporters which Paul and his team have engendered. That enthusiasm has been fuelled in part of course by the performances and results so far this season and on behalf of all of you I’d like to congratulate the playing squad and coaching staff for giving us so much enjoyment. But it is not only on the field of play that positive changes have been evident. You will have seen that much work has been carried out to smarten up parts of the stadium, inside and out. Less obvious, but at least as important, have been the enhancements to the training ground made since Paul’s arrival. Having a smart, well cared for working environment leads to pride in the organisation amongst those who work for it. The improvements to Playford Road have led to a palpable raising of standards, personal and collective, throughout the Club. Paul’s insistence on achieving and maintaining the highest possible standards have been important in uplifting the whole spirit of the Club. Our Academy continues to produce, year after year, further crops of talented young players, and it is a mark of the confidence of the coaching staff in the ability of those boys that a number of further new faces have been introduced into the first team, following the successful establishment of the likes of Flynn Downes, Luke Woolfenden, Jack Lankester and Tristan Nydam last year. Armando Dobra, Idris El Mizouni, Bailey Clements, Tyreece Simpson and Tommy Hughes are all players we’ve been introduced to in the last few months. Add to them some judicious signings of senior players and we have a future to look forward to. The Club demonstrated its increased commitment to the local community in September with the launch of The ITFC Community Trust. The Trust is looking to deliver a number of initiatives, in sport, education, community engagement and health across the Ipswich and Suffolk, looking to build a stronger, healthier and more active community using the power of Ipswich Town as the “heartbeat of Suffolk”. Last year I mentioned the loss of Kevin Beattie, arguably the greatest player ever to play for the club. Since then, a great deal of hard work by many involved with the Club and in the local community has culminated in £110,000 being raised, mostly through donations by fans, to provide a permanent memorial in his memory. It is hoped that the statue will be ready to be installed by the end of the season, on Portman Road, close to those of Sir Alf and Sir Bobby. I would like to congratulate all those involved in raising such a magnificent sum in so short a time. Finally, congratulations and the best of luck to our Supporter Liaison Officer and fellow director, Elizabeth Edwards, who has been shortlisted for the Football Supporters’ Association SLO of the year award: a fully deserved acknowledgement of all the work she does for the Club and for supporters. Examples of the work of the SLO will be on display at the AGM. We wish Liz luck at the Tower of London on 16 December. I am delighted that Paul will be with us at the AGM to answer your questions alongside Lee O’Neill. We look forward to meeting as many shareholders as are able to make it on 10 December. Yours sincerely Roger Finbow Chairman.