The 100 Club
Dulwich Hamlet Supporters' Trust is running a 100 Club to raise funds to invest in the Club for which the Trust will campaign to receive new issues of shares.

How does it Work?
- Members of the 100 Club will contribute every month by Standing Order
- Each month, there will be a first prize of 25% of the takings, and a second prize of 15% of the takings
- Note that NO MONEY will be taken under the Standing Order until enough commitments have been received for the scheme to start. Members will be given notice of the start of the scheme.

The DHST board will look to invest the funds where they are most needed, whether this be sponsoring a new player, investing in facilities on match days, purchasing new equipment for maintaining the ground. We will agree with the Club what the money is used for and the terms on which it is passed across. With your help, DHST can raise funds to help Dulwich Hamlet to flourish, and increase supporter influence in the club.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why all this talk about shares? Why do DHST not just give the 100 Club money over to the club for nothing?
In the past supporters groups at various football clubs have given sums of money to those managing the football club without receiving anything in return. They have done this out of love for their club. Later however some of these fans' groups have found themselves ignored and even, at times, exploited by the club's owners. DHST does not want to end up in the same situation and so it follows the advice of Supporters Direct, a government backed organisation that helps and advises fans on how to acquire shareholding stakes in the football clubs that they support, and asks for shares in return for the money that fans have raised.

The real value of shares is that they provide a lasting influence in the club and give the fans rights to have their real say in how things are running. And the more shares you have, the more say you have. Click here to see what rights shares give you. Having more of a say in how the club is run allows DHST to ensure the football is run correctly according to company (for instance holding AGMs) and listens to it's fans.

Shares also bind the Trust, the club and the community together. Organisations and directors of football clubs come and go, but DHST is here not just for this generation of fans, but also the next. One of the reasons it will last is because it is a shareholder and will pass these on to the next generation of supporters who in turn will be guaranteed a voice in the club.

Getting shares for investment also ensures that the money goes into Dulwich Hamlet Foootball Club. The danger of just handing over monies and not receiving any shares in return then there is no way of ensuring that the money is spent on DHFC. It could for instance be spent for Fisher Athletic's benefit as there is no way of tracking the money. Whereas if you get shares the money appears in the DHFC Ltd's audited accounts and you know for sure it is spent on Dulwich Hamlet Football Club.

So while there are no shares on the table what will DHST do with the 100 Club money it has raised?
DHST will continue to campaign for shares in the football club because as the pot of money grows it will be more attractive to the club owners. There is no rush so the money will be safely kept in a bank account as a safety net, accruing interest ready for the right time to invest.

Are there no alternatives to shares? Couldn't DHST accept something else in return for the monies it has raised?
The preference is for shares for the reasons outlined above, but DHST would consider a directorship on the board of the football club's limited company. However, this option would need to be discussed in further detail.

Why won't the football club give DHST shares?
We simply have not been given a clear answer to this question. The club have refused because they say '..it makes things difficult', but did not elaborate any further on this.

Rather than asking for shares, why doesn't DHST just campaign for more representation on the Football Committee?
There are several reasons for this.

Firstly, DHST already has representation on the Football Committee through its elected representative, currently Mick O'Shaughnessy, and the fans' views heard here.

Secondly, as it stands the Football Committee is simply not consulted on key issues concerning the way the football club is run and these decisions are taken at a higher level. These key issues include:

- the precise terms and conditions of Fisher Athletic's tenure at Champion Hill
- the annual budget of football club
- the terms of the Champion Hill lease with Kings College, and the strategy for renewing it
- the terms of the Greendale lease and the strategy for renewing it
- why Fisher Athletic's and Dulwich Hamlet's registered office address have moved to the same location, in Bromley
- how much money the Health Club, the bar and the 7-a-side league contributes to the football club
- the timing of the next AGM for Dulwich Hamlet Football Club Limited
- the strategy for attracting new investment and support to Dulwich Hamlet
- what happens to the windfall payments, like the Chris Dickson fee

On behalf of the supporters, DHST would very much like to know more information about these issues. More representation on the Football Committee won't provide this, but more shares, which in turn provides more influence in the club particularly at key times like Annual General Meetings, and possibly a directorship, would enable the fans to have a bigger say in the key issues concerning how the club is run.

Thirdly, DHST believes the best method of ensuring the supporters' voice is heard is through shares. This view is shared by Supporters Direct, the lead organisation helping and advising supporters' trusts.

But what happens if the club desperately needs money? What will DHST do then?
This situation has ocurred before. In response to the club's plea for money to improve the ground in February 2007 DHST offered the football club a £7,500 2 year interest free loan which could be repayable by money or shares. Legally bound by a loan agreement, the loan would fund improvements to Champion Hill to meet Grade C grading requirements before 31st March 2007, and therefore allow enable the club to be promoted to the Ryman Premier League. Read DHST's offer here

At the time of writing the club has not responded to the DHST offer.

Are the current owners going to receive money from the 100 club?
No. DHST is campaigning for a new issue of shares for its investment, rather than purchasing existing shares of individual owners.

What is a 'new share issue', and how is it different from buying up existing shares?
A 'new share issue' means that you purchase shares from the club, and not existing shareholders. The advantage of a new share issue is that the money will go into the club and appear in the accounts as an investment, as opposed to going into an individual's pockets as a private transaction.

How will DHST ensure that it gets a fair return for its investment?
DHST will only pass money to the Club when it is satisfied with the terms negotiated.

Will DHST have a say in the spending of the money?
Ideally, we would like to ring-fence the money to help the manager to sign a new player on contract, but we will agree with the club how this is spent and on what terms the money will be given over.

How will the spending of this be regulated?
DHST have a representative on the Football Committee who will oversee the spending of the money, and the investment will appear in the annual accounts of the football club.

Will members have an opportunity to vote on recommendations for spending the money?
DHST will consult its members through its newsletter and fans' forums planned for next season where participants will be able to have their say.

What will happen if DHST is unable to negotiate satisfactory return with the club?
The money raised through the 100 Club will be held by DHST until an agreement on return is reached with the club. If no agreement is reached within 12 months, DHST will call a meeting with all contributors to decide how to use the money and to agree the future of the 100 Club.

How long do I have to commit to my payments to the 100 Club?
We would like participants to commit for a season, but there is no legal requirement here.

What is the minimum payment?
Under the legislation governing the 100 Club, we must allow contributions as low as £1 a month, but we hope that most members will contribute at least £10.

Can fans less than 16 years of age join?
No, legally this is not possible.

If I want to stop my payments to the 100 Club, how do I do this?
Simply stop the standing order, and inform DHST so we can update our records.

Is there a penalty for pulling out of the scheme?
No.

What rights do shares give you?
- Just 1 share or above allows you to get copies of accounts, notice of AGM, attend AGM, see the shareholder list, get Articles of Association etc.

- 5% of shares allows a veto to be put on directors reducing the notice period for General Meetings (this could be useful as it prevents the 'shotgun' General Meeting scenario whereby the Club holds a General Meeting at a really awkward time without any notice so to push through a motion that people might find contentious;

- 10% of shares entitles us to (a) call a poll at a General Meeting (b) call a General Meeting itself and, for instance, put a motion of no confidence to the board (both of these things could be very useful to us strategically, particularly the calling a GM);

- 25% allows us to stop a resolution or rule change, for instance changing the Articles of the company (again, this could be useful as could prevent the winding up of  a company or a adverse rule change.)

Further Resources:
Application Form
Full rules