TRUST OPEN MEETING DATE SET
The steering group of the proposed Crawley Town Supporters Trust are pleased to announce details of an open meeting to discuss the possible official formation of the trust.

The meeting will be held at the Civic Hall, The Boulevard, Crawley, starting at 7.30pm on Tuesday, May 9.

All those with an interest in the future of Crawley Town Football Club are invited to attend, listen to presentations, take part in a question and answer session and vote on whether to proceed with the establishment of a trust.

The diverse group of long-term fans on the committee have been working with Supporters Direct, a government-backed initiative who have helped establish more than 100 trusts across England, Wales and Scotland.

The steering group wish to thank the Crawley Town Supporters Club for agreeing to a financial contribution towards the cost of the open meeting.

The objectives of the proposed trust, the working title of which is The Devils Trust, have been defined as follows:

- To unite all parties involved with CTFC ensuring that all parties are stakeholders in the success of each other.

- To create a close working partnership with CTFC, its supporters and the local community to ensure that the views of the supporters and the local community are fully represented in the running of the club.

- To ensure that the reputation and good name of CTFC is never compromised or placed in jeopardy.

- To assist CTFC in any way that has been sanctioned by the trust membership, including financially, in kind, and in developing partnerships to further the interests of CTFC.

-To assist the club in promoting support for CTFC and to encourage new support, especially of young people and families, and to strengthen the bonds between the club and the local community.

-To encourage the club to play football at the highest level possible, but always operating within a framework of responsible and prudent financial management.

In order to achieve its objectives the proposed trust is seeking support from four main groups, namely:

•  Crawley Town FC supporters

•  Crawley Town Football Club

•  Businesses and business people with connections to Crawley and district

•  The community leaders of Crawley and district

Speaking on behalf of the steering group, Antony Weller said: “ We started this group to see if there was any benefit to come from a supporters trust being established in Crawley.

“The steering group was conceived to see if the idea of a trust could be taken further. It was deliberately assembled to include a broad church of opinion, including supporters who had not previously met each other, and we would be surprised if any Crawley fan did not know at least one member of it.

“We're proud to have got it to this stage. Now it is up to the community of Crawley Town fans to say whether or not we were right to start the steering group and whether we together should take this forward to full trust status.

“We believe and trust that the strength of our argument is such that any personality issues can be put to one side. We are all together as we aim to ensure that the good name of Crawley Town Football Club is maintained. As you can see from our objectives listed above this is about the club we all love and we urge you to come along to find out more.”

The members of the steering group are: Phil Agius, Chris Barratt, Peter Bellamy, Mike Crowhurst, Jo Gomm, Steve Leake, Ian Mulcahy, Mark Ogbourne, Jeff Thaddeus, Phil Townsend and Antony Weller.

Please check local media, the CTFC.net website and its forum for the latest news on the trust. For more information, please contact thedevilstrust@aol.com