Dear Dons Trust member,
Welcome to October 2023’s edition of the Dons Trust Board newsletter – our monthly collection of news and stories about ongoing Dons Trust activities.
Debt consultation survey – out now!
As members may be aware, The Dons Trust Board (DTB) has been consulting members on the management of the debt owed to it, because of the two Plough Lane Bonds.
As part of this process, we would like to find out some more about the views of our members.
Specifically, we would like to know what our members think about the possibility of allowing further equity investment while retaining fan ownership. This would mean the possibility of reducing our current 75%+1 ownership of the club below that level.
Each DT member has been sent access to this survey by email, to canvas their views.
This survey does need careful consideration. We have included a document here for you to download and read to help you understand the issues. Please read this before completing the survey.
It is important to be very clear with you: Retaining ownership is something that is critical to both the functioning and the identity of our football club.
Nothing about this survey is in any way whatsoever a step towards reducing our shareholding to that of a minority.
Dons Trust Board Elections update
Our 2023 DTB Elections have been announced. You can read the original announcement and the follow-up announcement on the DT website.
Please go to the Elections page to see more or to download a nominations form and other information.
Nominations are now open for the election of 6 members for the Dons Trust Board. These vacancies will be for 3 years (top 3 candidates in the election) and 2 years (candidates who come in 4th, 5th and 6th places in the election).
Elected members serve on the Board for a fixed time period. This year there will be elections to choose a minimum of six members.
Please ensure nomination forms are returned to elections@thedonstrust.org by the closing date (23:59 on October 28th 2023).
The manifestos of those candidates standing for election will be sent out on Wednesday 1st November to all DT members, followed by voting forms on Saturday 11th November.
The deadline to submit your democratic vote in this year’s DTB Election is Saturday 2nd December.
All election related questions should be addressed to Matthew Breach, Elections Steering Group via: elections@thedonstrust.org
Dons Trust Special General Meeting – Wednesday 1st November
The next Dons Trust Special General Meeting (SGM) will take place at 7.30 pm on Wednesday 1st November at Plough Lane.
Members will have received all appropriate documents for this meeting either electronically / or by post by now. Any member who has not received them please email secretary@thedonstrust.org
If you are not attending the meeting in person and wish to submit an electronic proxy vote, please do this by noon on Monday 30 October.
If you received the papers for the meeting through the post, and you aren’t planning to come to the meeting, you will need to complete the paper proxy form that has been sent to you to register your view and to return that form to us to be received by noon on Monday 30 October.
The form can either be emailed to secretary@thedonstrust.org or sent to The Secretary, The Dons Trust, Cherry Red Records Stadium, Plough Lane, SW17 0NR.
The meeting will be recorded and made available after the event to Dons Trust members on the ProBoards forum. If you have any queries about joining the event please email contact@thedonstrust.org.
Chair of AFC Wimbledon PLC and AFC Wimbledon
The boards of the Dons Trust and AFCW PLC have asked Mick Buckley to continue in his role as AFC Wimbledon Chair.
Further details can be found on the DT website.
Meet the Dons Trust Board
The next “Meet the Dons Trust Board” session will be with Kevin Rye and Mark Lewis, focusing on communication, will take place in November – look out on the Dons Trust website for more details next week.
Audio and Video recordings of previous “Meet the Dons Trust Board” sessions can be accessed online – the November session will also be recorded for members to listen back to.
Introducing the next generation of AFC Wimbledon Owners
The latest edition of our regular Dons Trust column published in the South London Press was penned by some of the members of our new 16-24 year-old advisory group, Jasper McNulty, Oscar Nathan and Ben Lewis.
If you want to find out more about their work, drop us a line at contact@thedonstrust.org.
Members of this group also attended the club’s Junior Dons Meet the Manager session held at Plough Lane on Wednesday 25th October, to canvas young fans’ opinions’ on their matchday experience.
Dons Trust Board October 2023 minutes
A summary of the October Dons Trust Board meeting and links to previous meetings’ minutes can be found via the dedicated section on the website here.
Michele Little will be fielding members’ questions in person at the Dons Trust kiosk ahead of our FA Cup 1st round game v Cheltenham Town on 4th November.
You can also contact@thedonstrust.org or tweet @TheDonsTrust if you’ve any comments or questions about the Dons Trust.
You can also catch up with fellow Dons Trust members via ProBoards – https://donstrust.boards.net. You will need to be registered and to use your name to post there.
For any enquiries or issues about club events, tickets, the stadium, merchandise etc. – email the club on enquiries@afcwimbledon.ltd.uk
Thanks for reading and Come On You Dons!
The Dons Trust Board