Chair's statement: One year in

Co-owner and CEO Michelle Harness pens a statement ahead of her one-year anniversary since taking ownership of the football club…

12 months ago, we had to try. At the time it was unclear whether the club would survive the first few weeks, but we couldn’t ignore the fact that Scunthorpe United was on the verge of seeing its then-124-year history come to an end.

The last year has seen us battle through a lot. We secured our home by the end of November and placed it into a Community Interest Company so it can never be owned by a single person again, attained stadium naming rights - which was a vital commercial deal for us - all the while battling through the issues that we inherited. We began moving the club forward hour-by-hour, day-by-day, week-by-week and were then able to put together a plan which saw us progress month-by-month. It’s been a survival mode that we’ve been driving through, and we’ve virtually done that now. A year down the line, and we can move from that mentality to one of sustainability. It’s the next phase for Scunthorpe United, and the only true path this football club has to go down.

Coming so close to the brink of extinction can never be forgotten, and we must never allow it to happen again. However, we must draw a line under what’s been, and move on to the next chapter of this fantastic club’s history.

Along with Roj, George and Ian, and indeed our hardworking staff behind the scenes, we like to think we have forged a special unity within the club, and none of this could have been possible without their hard work and dedication. While Roj, George and Ian officially came on board as co-owners in June, they were within the club from day one, and were an integral part of generating the funds to take the shareholding of the football club. Their involvement was paramount to being able to take custodian of Scunthorpe United in the first place.

We’re closing in on eradicating the remaining figure of debt that we took on 12 months ago, with less than 10% of it remaining. After this has been cleared, the only debts the football club has will be our own - the usual operating debts that come with running a football club, but we will always remain within our means with anything we do.

We couldn’t have done it without you, and we certainly couldn’t have done it without some key contributors along the way. Firstly, to the Iron Bru and Iron Hour Podcasts. They put rivalry in the podcast world aside, and stepped up prior to us taking the club. It’s one of the many reasons that gave us all a motivation to take on the challenge. To unite the entire football world takes something special, and to raise over £70,000 to pay the players and staff their wages not only showed how important football is to everyone, but also gave us a little bit of breathing space to get into the club and get to grips with what was ahead.

Being there from day one, we cannot forget Danny Stamp and the Smoking Goat. Danny’s support during the darkest of times was unwavering and dedicated. His service to the football club behind the scenes in continuing his operations will never be forgotten by myself, and I’m delighted to watch his progress since leaving the club, as his business ventures expand and thrive. 

Sam and Emma Beadle, and their team at the Merch Labs, stepped in instantly and rescued a shut down online club shop, turned around a new website, and produced their own products. They backed the staff with their “United we Stand” campaign, with their t-shirt and hoodies going viral as a result. The revenue created from their exploits was another major contributor to us emerging from our first month still afloat, and they’ve continued to be a valuable asset over the course of the last year, with their contributions to merchandise, among many other things.

We cannot proceed past merchandise without giving our Technical Kit Partners, Kelme, and James Lawrence a shout out. They could quite easily have joined the rest in taking action against the football club, but they remained behind us, worked with us, and assisted with the delivery of the second half of stock last season to help us generate income. That culminated in three exceptional kits for this season, with record sales across the board. Their faith in us as new owners when they had every right to be skeptical and cautious was a true testament to our ever-growing partnership since.

The North Lincolnshire Council has also played an instrumental role in assisting us too, none more so than their involvement in securing our home in collaboration with Holly Mumby-Croft, who secured £2.5m of Government funding to make it possible. Without NLC and Holly, we simply wouldn’t have the Attis Arena to be able to enjoy our football.

I’d also like to reserve a thank you to all of the Directors who have been part of the journey over the course of the year. Each and every one of them played a part during their tenures, with a number of them stepping forward to assist us when no one else did. As a Board, we would also like to recognise what Lee Turnbull did for the club a year ago. When the club was at its worst this time last year, he stood tall and proud on a daily basis and rallied the remaining staff to keep going each day, providing a light at the end of the tunnel for everyone.

Every single bit of fundraising and sponsorship over the course of the last year has been absolutely vital, and it will continue to be vital moving forward. As stated earlier, we move from survival mode to sustainable mode, but part of that phase change is to carry on everything we’ve been doing well over the last year. While I cannot name every single sponsor and every single individual who has helped us in their own little way, it would be remiss of me not to drop a mention to Stuart and Susan Maw. Week-in, week-out, they continue to drive their fundraising page through auctions and football cards. Their consistency in generating money continues to go a long way to assist us, and doesn’t go unnoticed. 

The massive unreserved thank you goes to each and every one of you. To everyone that buys a ticket to come and support us, to everyone that has bought a shirt, or any merchandise, to everyone who buys food and drink at the Attis Arena, and to anyone that sponsors us big or small, or buys half-time draw tickets, the programme or the online lottery. Everyone that does any of those things contributes to our ongoing existence, allowing us to move forward and begin to thrive once more.

The upsetting, but necessary, part of the last 12 months is we’ve been largely paying off the inherited debts. Moving forward, if we can continue to generate the sort of levels of funds that we’ve achieved, every penny will go towards to long term sustainability of Scunthorpe United, and that can be the real positive as we move forward.

We took the decision to extend Andy Butler and John Schofield’s contracts until the end of the 2025-26 season recently. Andy is truly one of our own. Each day he displays his passion, hard work and desire around the place, and what he’s done so far since day one in the role has been fantastic. He’s lead the team to a fantastic start in the league, and we want him to build on that. John is infectious, buzzes around the lads and everyone around the club, and is a fantastic coach, and both Andy and John complement each other so well.

As part of our move towards sustainability, we have to look for longevity when it comes to our managerial appointments. We have to back those we put in charge, and we have full faith in Andy and John, who will continue to drive standards each and every day.

Tomorrow will hopefully be a celebration of all of the above. To celebrate Scunthorpe United as the club celebrates a 125th anniversary year that very nearly wasn’t, and to pay homage to all the fantastic work that has gone in to get to this stage. The hard work doesn’t stop now, it’s the beginning of our new phase, it’s the beginning of year two and I’m excited for this ongoing journey that we are all on together.

Now let’s continue to be United, continue to back Andy and the players, and continue to enjoy the existence of one hell of a football club. On behalf of the Board, we cannot wait to see and hear you at the Attis Arena tomorrow. Let’s make it another day to remember.

Up the Iron!
Michelle