DFC unveils five-year plan to support new chapter in its history

DFC board’s future plans were unveiled at the club’s first new-look Fans’ Forum last week – with close to one hundred supporters attending in person and online.

The board highlighted its ambition to have – and be able to support better – its men’s and women’s sides playing in their respective National Leagues in five years’ time.

With just a handful of teams operating in the men’s National League without full-time playing staff, financial targets and forecasts were discussed which it is hoped will help oversee a new chapter in the club’s history, with day-time training introduced.

The board re-affirmed its intentions to be more transparent with supporters, with this early dialogue the start of a more forward-thinking, open and dynamic approach.

With crucial sponsorship money recently affecting budgets, the board outlined its intentions to put new plans in place to ensure the club is in a stronger financial position to support these goals.

Work on a new business plan is currently underway to ensure every area of the club’s finances and business operations are examined in detail to highlight saving and earning potential. While this business plan will take a number of months to finalise, it has already helped earmark several areas of focus.

These include:

• Expanding the Academy, starting with a new Girls’ Academy in 2025/26
• Installation of electric chargers in the car park
• Improving retail revenue
• Renegotiating existing contracts reaching their end
• Increased attendance at matches

The board estimates daytime training for the men’s side and other future needs will cost somewhere close to half a million pounds over its current budget by the fifth year. With several ideas already being put in place and others in the pipeline, the plan includes a focus on increasing revenue across many areas of the club. One of the obvious ways to help achieve this is through securing greater attendances at the men’s and women’s home matches. A focus group led by Norman Grimes will be set-up to concentrate solely on this area, with expressions of interest requested for supporters to join.

The board highlighted the need for caution, with the average annual deficit for a National League Club said to be somewhere close to £700,000 and many clubs highlighted during the discussions, millions of pounds in debt.

It acknowledged that directors had been forced to put in personal loans – with others being written off – while the club also needed money from the Supporters’ Association, to ensure it was financially secure over Christmas.

While these were due to a number of issues, including a significant budgeted sponsorship deal not capable of being paid, it has led to a renewed focus for action. However, the board spoke of its intention to strike a balance between ambition and financial security.

The board highlighted the fact that it did not have a millionaire benefactor putting in money to the club like other clubs which can afford bigger playing budgets and commended the work of Ady and his staff in putting together a competitive team on a budget half of that of some of its rivals.

Only a handful of staff at the club are full time and the club recognised the important role many of its volunteers play in ensuring the club continues to compete on and off the pitch.

The work of the community team, overseen by Darren Phillips, along with the hard work of Russell Searle and Darren Corley in running the Youth Academy sections and Grassroots sections so well, were acknowledged, as was the work of Macca and Connor with the women’s team and the Academy section overseen by Tony Burman and Ben Greenhalgh.

Action areas: Suggested action areas discussed to help the club achieve these goals, included:

• A better connection between the board and supporters, with more visibility at Supporters Association meetings to provide updates and listen to ideas. The tireless work of Geoff and previously Mick in running the Supporters’ Association was highlighted.

• Numbers for the Supporters’ Association’s Warbler are down – we would love to get more people signing up to this. There are other ways supporters can financially support the club.

• The club is aware of improvements needed to the sound system which can help generate a better atmosphere around the ground. Is there a company that would like to support or sponsor these improvements?

• Do any supporters know of any other businesses that would like to sponsor the club in general?

• The club is open to talking to investors who could help it move forward financially.

• Match day volunteers are always needed.

• More supporters are crucial to help support this vision. Focus groups will be set up to help and support some ideas around this.

If you can support any of the above action areas or want to find out more about any of them, please contact the club at jack@dartfordfc.com or talk to board members on match days.

Questions from Supporters

Some questions asked on the night and answers are below:

Q. Has Ady’s budget decreased from last season?

A. Yes, it was cut by around 15 per cent following relegation. Ady opted to keep some of the budget back to use later on in the season, but following some sponsorship issues the board asked him to hold off spending this extra amount, although he was told the money would be made available if the right player came along.

Q. Is the club looking for investment?

A. As highlighted, the club is open to investment but it has to be the right person, package and structure.

Q. Could Skinner’s Bar be opened up to all fans?

A. The club is in a three-year contract with a company which operates and runs the upstairs suites and bars. This means we are unable to offer further alternative refreshment options at this time.

Q. Could something be done about the chips? We eat at many grounds and feel the chips are not at the standard of other grounds, although the burgers are good.

A. We have lots of positive feedback regarding the food offerings, but will look into how the chips are prepared.

Q. Could you look into pop up bars around the ground? It takes a lot of effort and time to get served and bring drink around the ground.

A. The club is in a three-year contract with a company which operates and runs the upstairs suites and bars. This means we are unable to offer alternative refreshment options at this time but will discuss how these could be improved.

Q. Will the club secure good fees for any young players sold?

A. The Academy players are on two-year contracts so the club would be entitled to a fee should any be sold – although this is not often very much money at this level. DFC would never stand in the way of a player who wants to play at a higher level, it is about ensuring the club are compensated in some way at a level that suits all parties. We are more likely to get a bigger fee from a buying club selling the player on again.

Q. Delivering fliers into the new housing around Ebbsfleet has been brought up before, why have you not done this?

A. We only have a handful of full-time staff with the club relying heavily on volunteers. We are looking to start some focus groups in a bid to drum up some help and ideas to bring more fans to the ground.

Q. What has happened to the testimonials that have been promised for long-serving players?

A. The club cannot get involved in arranging testimonials, with testimonial committees put together by the player to arrange. The club has had many conversations regarding these and is waiting for these committees to come through with their plans and then dates will be agreed.

Q. Could Dartford have a Darts team?

A. The club used to have a pool team and would be willing to discuss any ideas like this.

Q. Could season tickets be linked to a discount at the club shop.

A. Members of the Supporters’ Association get 10 per cent off purchases over £20.

Q. Could hats and scarves be available in other areas around the ground on cold days?

A. Volunteers available to run these have made this difficult, but the club will look into trialling some other areas for this to happen.

Q. Does the club not value cup competitions like the FA Cup or FA Trophy?

A. The club would love a cup run that can generate a lot of extra money. Unfortunately, this hasn’t happened for some time, but not due to any interference from the board.

Q. Could we play Millwall during pre-season?

A. The club has been in contact with Millwall who were close to agreeing to a friendly. Unfortunately, they decided on other avenues further afield. The Charlton friendly was very successful and further friendlies of this standard are always sought but are becoming harder to come by.

Q. Is there a way the website can be linked to the socials, so it’s the first place news is announced?

A. All DFC news is put on the website first, although this does not include match day team selections or match commentary.

Thank you to all who attended the Fans’ Forum in person and online. We intend to have more of these in the future and hope it proved an informative evening and that you can support us in our ambitions moving forward.

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