Date: 12^th November 2024 at 18:30

Venue: Brentford Football Club and Via Zoom Conference Call

1. Welcome

AH welcomed everyone to the meeting both on-line and in person at the G-Tech.

DM started the meeting and announced that all voting for motions and elections to the committee would close in 5 minutes.

DM ran through the agenda provided previously advised in the AGM pack circulated to all members ahead of the meeting and ensured everyone on-line could hear the meeting.

DM advised that AH would be standing down as BIAS chair after serving 8 years in the role and many more years as a committee member. DM confirmed that AH would continue to serve on the committee for a further year to ensure a smooth handover of duties and placed on record the committee’s thanks for AH’s hard work and dedication over the years in establishing BIAS as an independent Supporters Association that members can be proud of.

2. Annual Report of the BIAS Committee – Presented by Adam Hobbs (Chair)

AH said he was pleased to present his final annual report (circulated prior to the meeting) which was the longest ever and reflected the amount of work put in by the committee this year.

AH walked through the annual report and provided some personal reflections as follows:

As the football club enters its fourth year as a Premier League club in which the club continues to thrive and prove that it can compete at the highest level, for BIAS we approach the end of another busy year. I’d like to start with thanking our brilliant Executive Committee for all their hard work in the last year.

Special thanks to Ronald Mansveld, Richard Kirchner, Ben Bland and Andy Griffin who have decided not to stand for re-election. Thank you for all your hard work and dedication you have given during your respective times on the committee.

Also, as you will have read in the accompanying email this is my final annual report as Chair of BIAS. Having been appointed as Chair in 2016, and a member of the Executive Committee for many years prior to that, I now feel it is time to take a step back and allow someone else to take the reins.

My first involvement with BIAS was as part of the Stadium Action Group to campaign for a new stadium for Brentford, in Brentford at Lionel Road. I’m delighted that for the 2nd year running we will be hosting our AGM in the very place that seemed a distant dream all those years ago.

I am immensely proud of the way BIAS has grown in the time of my tenure, membership has increased from around 500 to over 3000. We’ve gone from a small committee and struggling to attract volunteers to join, to having up to 15 members of the Executive Committee. We represent our members on many working groups such as Fan Behaviour, Ticketing, Food and Drink, Sustainability, Women and Girls, Disability, Away Travel to name but a few. We have regular meetings with the FSA, Met Police and Premier League. We have four reps on the Fan Advisory Board, including co-chairmanship with Bees United.

This growth of the Association in not only membership numbers, but its structure, professionalism and operational functions are down to the hard work and dedication of our Officers and Committee members. Although I am taking a step back, I will continue to serve as a member of the committee for this forthcoming year to ensure a smooth handover to my successor. I will always remain proud to have led the association in these recent years.

AH congratulated Angelo Basu on his appointment as chair by the committee. In accordance with the terms of the BIAS Constitution, the Executive Committee voted unanimously at their meeting on 12 August to appoint Angelo as AH’s successor with effect from this AGM.

This year we have continued grow our membership and enhance our reputation with the Club.

Whilst we were not able to prevent an increase to season ticket prices for this season, we did work with the Club to spread the cost of season tickets across 12 months rather than 10 months and to ensure match day prices were frozen. We have also gained agreement from the Club that there will be greater supporter engagement on ticket pricing for next season, which I very much welcome.

AH provided an update on the Fan Advisory Board (FAB)

The Fan Advisory Board meets four times a year and is composed of four representatives from BIAS and four representatives from Bees United. The respective Chairs of both BIAS and BU share the Chair of the FAB as Co-Chairs. There are usually five or six representatives from the club, the CEO – Jon Varney attends at least two meetings per year. Fan Advisory Boards are a key component of the Premier League’s (PL) Fan Engagement Standard (FES). It should be noted that we are unable to publish full minutes of the FAB meetings due to the confidential nature of what is discussed.

The following key items have been discussed at the in the last year:

•          Club Strategy including key objectives and financial outlook

•          Season ticket renewals, Every Seat Counts

•          Matchday operations, including Safety, Behaviour and Stewarding issues

•          Feedback from all other working groups (see workstreams below)

•          Sustainability

•          ‘Sign-off’ of key documents (note that the FAB, is an advisory body and does not have a veto on BFC business)

All Premier League FAB Chairs meet twice a year in a meeting hosted by the Premier League. Usually in the autumn and the in the spring. We also have a WhatsApp group without the PL present so that we can discuss issues that we have in common and maintain solidarity with our peers.

AH referred the meeting to the Annual Report for details of the activities and achievements in line with our 23/24 Mission Statement.

Looking forward AH stated that BIAS will continue to work on behalf of our members and all football supporters to ensure the match day experience for all supporters is the best that it can be.

He said over the years we have built strong relationships with the Club and are now heavily involved in many working groups designed to improve your match day experience. This provides BIAS with a great opportunity to influence Club decisions before they are made. We also enjoy open and clear lines of communication with the Club to put forward ideas or concerns on behalf of supporters.

Our independent status also places us in a unique position where we can openly criticise the Club if we feel supporter interests are not at the heart of any changes being made. For example, earlier this year there were rumours that the Club were considering playing matches at Twickenham stadium which we strongly opposed.

Our new committee will be considering the BIAS priorities for 2025 and we will shortly be sending a survey to all the members to seek feedback on the areas that you wish BIAS to focus on. We hope you will take a few minutes to give us your views in this regard.

Going forward we also recognise that we need to communicate better with our members and the launch of our new website later this year will be a huge step in achieving this. Of course, as volunteers, the committee’s time is limited but we are all focused in achieving our vision:

To be regarded as an effective independent Supporters Association, representing the interests of ALL supporters of Brentford Football Club.

3. Financial Statements for the year ended 31st May 2024 – Presented by David Minckley (Finance Officer)

DM presented the Financial Statements as circulated prior to the meeting. He referred to pages 14- 17 of the AGM Agenda and Information pack which provides details of the BIAS Financial Statements for the year ending 31st May 2024.

DM ran through some of the key financial highlights:

• This financial reporting period has seen an operating profit of £1916.47
• Total balances for the end of the BIAS financial year (31st May 2024) amounted to £33975.05
• Accounts for this period have now been audited and approved by an independent auditor, Jim Walsh

 Income Statement

• Following decision in November 2018 to introduce free membership, we have seen a gradual reduction in the number of members who make donations by standing order and PayPal which is reflected in the level of income received
• Income from Donations for the financial year ending 31st May 2024 amounted to £2517.92
• This is a reduction of £188.00 from previous year
• We would once again like to place on record the committee’s thanks to those members who continue to make donations which places our finances on a very healthy footing. Their generosity is not taken for granted and is very much appreciated
• Our boat trip to Fulham away on 16th August 2023 made a profit of £303.04 and we will continue to look for opportunities to run more Boat trips to London Away games if the kick off times and tides permit
• BIAS will continue to explore other avenues to increase income e.g. Boat trips to London Away games but with a healthy balance sheet, BIAS focus continues to on growing membership.

Revenue Statement

• With our income streams reducing, we continue to ensure our expenditure is kept to a minimum 
• This reporting period we have seen an increase in Administrative Expenses of £208.54 
• This increase has been caused in part as a result of purchasing a license for a programme called Election Runner (£223.45) to support AGM voting due to increased number of members, and the purchase of a new BIAS website (£129.17)
• Other costs relate to Zoom subscription and postage costs in attempting to contact members where email addresses have failed.
• Bank Charges continue to be incurred (£60.00)

Financial Summary

• Although we continue to see donations reduce following the decision in 2018 to introduce free membership, and a slight increase in operating costs, BIAS continues to be in a healthy financial state with a growing membership and we believe we are well placed to build on this over the next 12 months, working hard to improve the match day experience for all fans. 

 4. Approve Motions presented by David Minckley & Sarah Todd (General Secretary)

Full results will be/are published on BIAS website. A summary of the motions approved is below (results include votes cast in person at the meeting).

a. Approval of Minutes from AGM meeting held 15th November 2023 – votes for 450 (90%) – approved

b. Approval to adopt Committee Annual Report for the year ending 31st May 2024 – votes for 460 (92%) – approved

c. Approval to continue free membership for further 12 months – votes for 485 (97%) – approved

d. Approval of Financial Accounts for year ending 31st May 2024 – votes for 457 (92%) – approved

e. Approval to retain Jim Walsh as Independent Auditor of BIAS Accounts – votes for 477 (96%) – approved

5. Nominations and Elections to the BIAS Executive Committee – Presented by Sarah Todd (General Secretary)

DM confirmed that the following Executive Committee members will remain on the committee having been elected for 3 years at the last AGM: Peter Edward; Adam Hobbs; David Minckley; Richard Nabarro; Sarah Todd; Matthew White; Allyson Woyak.

A summary of the votes for election to the BIAS Executive Committee is shown below (results include votes cast in person at the meeting). Full results will be/are published on BIAS website.

• Mark Chapman – votes for 415 (83%)
• Taylor Dawson – votes for 378 (76%)
• Christian Harper – votes for 341 (68%)
• Michael Johnston – votes for 420 (84%)
• Jordan Nugara – votes for 391 (78%)
• Chris Ritchings – votes for 366 (73%)
• Panit Torkildsen – votes for 307 (61%)

All of the above were elected to the committee each having received over 51% of the votes cast.

AH placed link in the Zoom call chat in order that people could view the results of the voting. The results were also displayed on screen for those who attended in person.

6. Q & A Session with Membership

New BIAS chair joined AH, DM & ST on stage.

• Q. Chris Ritchings: (from the room) – given the accounts showed that BIAS had a stable amount of money is there anything more we should be doing with the money as the committee? 
• A. DM – we have discussed this as a committee on a number of occasions and we must always be able to justify to our members what we spend. If anyone has any suggestions, we will be happy to receive them and consider them. We have in the past made donations to the Brentford Penguins Football Team and Cardiac Risk in the Young (CRY). It is always good to have a balance sitting there as a contingency fund. We need to make sure people see the benefit of what we spend our money on. We are fortunate to be able to keep costs low as Brentford FC do give us free advertising and use of space etc.  DM once again placed on record the committees thanks to those members who continue to make donations which places our finances on a very healthy footing. Their generosity is not taken for granted and is very much appreciated

• Q. (From Zoom) – AH summarised the question for those in the room who could not hear the zoom call. For away travel how do the club decide which matches to make special offers on?
• A. DM – “I came by train” will be extended to all PL games outside London and we consider this a very positive initiative – BFC is the only club doing this. It is a pilot in conjunction with Trainline. The club is keen to take max allowance of tickets for away games and they base offers where they think they will have maximum effect. There is a cost involved to the club and we will continue to push for further incentives.
• After a follow up question, it was confirmed that the train discount will be available for Newcastle cup game.

• Q. from Zoom – AH summarise to room – AB was asked to introduce himself.
• A. AB has been BFC fan since 01/01/94. He is a ST holder but lives in Leeds. He is able to get to the GTECH most weeks. In the past due to living in Leeds he spent many years mainly as an away fan. AB has seen BFC in all four divisions as has his son. He has been on the BIAS committee for two years (NB he said one year at the meeting in error). AB said his professional background is as a lawyer. He is also involved in other voluntary organisations some of which he has chaired. He has both professional and voluntary experience as a chair.

• Q. From Zoom – How did AB get to be chair after only one year and what are his ambitions?
• A. AB – he stated he was asked by the committee to do so when AH was looking to step back. AB is glad AH is staying on to share his knowledge. His aims are for evolution not revolution and he wants to build on what BIAS has done so far. BFC has changed beyond recognition from when AH first joined BIAS. There have been a lot of changes including our promotion to the PL and the stadium. These changes bring a lot of pressures both to the club and to BIAS. What we are doing as a club and as supporters is continually evolving. AB says he fits the category of a traditional old Brentford supporter but is also looking to the future with energy and excitement and is always looking for new ideas. AB has also been a BIAS representative on the Fan Advisory Board and this has enabled him to build up a relationship with club officials. 

• Q. From Zoom – there has been a noticeable drop off in atmosphere in home matches. Does BIAS have any plans to work with club on this?
• A. AH – there has been a home atmosphere working group set up with the club but this has had only had one meeting so far. We have deliberately looked for younger committee members this time round so that we reflect our fans more fairly. A meeting was held a few years ago with Thomas Frank and he was clear about importance of fans. He showed some videos of Danish games.  AB said we want fans and members to tell us what they want to do. We need to come up with ideas that we know Brentford fans will be happy to do when we are sat in the ground.

7. Conclusion and end of AGM

DM gave thanks to club and in particular Sally Stephens and Sam Cliffe for their help in setting up the meeting and allowing us to use the GTECH for our meeting.

DM said the new committee will meet next month to work through priorities for 2025. We will be issuing a survey to members soon to obtain feedback to help shape our priority decisions. The results of this will be used to prioritise BIAS work for the coming year as our aim is always, is to represent all our members and BFC fans. 

Meeting Closed