Supporters' Board - FAQs

The Objective of the supporter’s board is set out in the terms of reference as follows:

“The SB's purpose is to help ensure that Derby County Football Club (DCFC) is run in the long-term interests of the fans, focusing on financial compliance and sustainability, governance processes, and the overall Club strategy.”

Derby County Supporters Board Terms of Reference October 2024

In effect a Supporters Board (SB) - sometimes referred to as a ‘Shadow Board' or a ‘Fans Advisory Board’ - is an organisation composed of supporters that seeks to ensure the Club is run in the long-term interests of supporters. The SB meets with, but is independent of, the Club. It works in conjunction with the Club for mutual benefit.

The SB will advise and challenge the Club primarily on issues relating to governance (as set out in the terms of reference) and the SCG will advise and challenge the Club on broader operational issues including, but not limited to, those impacting the matchday experience for fans. Both bodies are of equal status.

As set out in the terms of reference, the SB will also have the right to veto certain decisions by the club including any proposals to move from, or sell, Pride Park Stadium, change the club colours, make significant changes to the Crest, or join any breakaway leagues.

The proposal to form a European Super League and insolvency problems at several clubs, such as Bury FC and here at Derby County, have shown that clubs are often not run in the long-term interests of supporters. Supporters are often neglected in the plans for the future of the game in England.

Tracey Crouch MP chaired the Fan-led Review into English Football Governance which was published in November 2021 and the Government gave its response in April 2022. The review was broadly accepted by the Government and it is expected that there will be new legislation and the creation of a new regulator, The Independent Regulator for English Football (IREF).

One of the recommendations was to improve Fan Engagement, with Supporter Boards seen as a key way of doing that. The Football Supporters’ Association (FSA) are backing the formation of SBs. An IREF would require minimum standards of fan engagement for all licenced clubs.

The SB is separate from - indeed independent of - the Club’s own Board. Its role is to provide advice and challenge to the decisions and strategy of the Club’s Board in relation to key areas of governance as outlined in the terms of reference.

The SB aims to promote responsible ownership to ensure that owners are committed to the club’s long-term financial stability.

Events such as the sale of Pride Park Stadium will not be repeated without the permission of the SB.

The SB will have access to financial information which will allow concerns to be raised with the club, and if necessary, the SB can flag those concerns to the governing body (currently the EFL but, if implemented, in future the ‘Independent Regulator for Football’).

A supporters’ board is not a “silver bullet” but it will be a key part of helping Derby ensure the dark days of 2021 are not allowed to be repeated.

The DCFC supporters board will have the following membership:

• 1 member from the Ram’s Trust
• 1 member from the groups that make up the SCG
• 4 independent members

There is no set way to form a Supporters Board and we took advice from the FSA on how best to form one at Derby County. The model we have chosen recognises that established supporter groups represent fans already: groups that are open and democratically elect and consult members already provide a vehicle for supporter representation. At the same time, we recognised there were fans who could contribute significantly to a Supporters Board who are not (and do not wish to be) an officer of an existing group.

Supporter Trusts - such as RamsTrust - are established for the purposes of promoting that Football Clubs be run in the long-term interests of supporters with a particular focus on governance issues. This is recognised in the Government White paper which notes that a Supporters Board should include a Club’s Football Trust.

Membership of the SB was offered to other representative groups through the SCG.

No. Its role is limited to those identified in the terms of reference.

We advertised for members for the supporters board in February 2024 following the production of a role description setting out the skills and criteria required.

Over 80 individuals applied for the roles with an exceptional overall standard of applicant.

Shortlisted applicants were interviewed by a panel consisting of the club chief executive, a senior representative from the FSA and a former Chair of the PFA.

The four successful applicants bring a variety of skill sets and, complimented by the two SCG representatives, give the SB, as a whole, the right balance of skills to help deliver the challenging role set out for the board.

Individual biographies of all the SB members can be found here.

The SB will publish articles summarising key points of all Board meetings.

Supporters can raise questions with the SB through the SCG or via email at [email protected].

Further communications plans will be developed by the SB in consultation with the club and the SCG over the course of the next few months.