A LOCAL football club says it is having to “face reality” and turn the club back into a private enterprise after a failed experiment to run it as a community benefit society.

In 2015 Bradford Park Avenue’s owner Gareth Roberts announced plans to turn it into a community owned club, rather than operate as a private company, in a bid to find a “new generation of supporters.”

It would be turned into a club that supporters and community stakeholders would own and make the decisions on by paying an annual fee. The decision to make the change was said to have been made after “several months” of research.

However, at the annual meeting of the club’s community benefit society, it was revealed that very few people signed up to be a part of the new structure, and that the current system was not enough to keep Park Avenue afloat financially.

A statement from the club’s board said: “The club’s first team currently plays in National League North, just two divisions below the Football League. The cost of surviving at this level has escalated to a level which the club cannot afford beyond the short term, under its current ownership structure. Operational costs are eating up capital which had been earmarked for off-the-field development, and new investment is needed.

“Two years ago the club became a Community Benefit Society, intending that its ownership should be spread amongst the local and regional community. However, very few new members have joined.

“As a CBS the club is entitled to issue Community Shares to potential investors, but the law provides for a maximum of £100,000 in community shares for any individual, which is not enough to make a crucial difference. In addition the CBS is heavily indebted to its current benefactor, and as an investment opportunity the club in its current form is unattractive.

“The directors have decided to face reality, and they propose to change the structure of the club so that it becomes a privately owned enterprise, from which investors can potentially earn dividends or at least look to recover their investment at some point in time.

“The proposed change indicates the determination of the directors to find new sources of investment so as to maintain the club at its present level and possibly above.”

The changes will be subject to the approval of the current members of the CBS, the FA and the Financial Conduct Authority.

A further meeting of members will be held, during which specific proposals for the club’s future will be put forward.