As a result of nationwide quarantine measures introduced in March because of the coronavirus pandemic, April 2020 has financially been one of the toughest months for the club since we became member-owned in 2018.
With no matches played, our income (not including Hardship Fund donations, which are recorded separately below) was just £629.10. As a comparison, a year ago in April 2019 we received a total income of £10,830.80, of which £5,030.06 alone was donations from supporters attending games.
Nevertheless, in April 2020 the club still had obligations to meet and spent a total of £12,685.19, with the largest item of expenditure £5,535.16 for an order from Italy of additional stock of home and away shirts that was placed before our online store was forced to close. The closure of the store also meant that we spent more on refunding merchandise orders (£442.18) than we received in sales income. In addition, we also spent £1,186.06 in postage costs for sending out merchandise in February and March.
On top of these costs, the club also had to pay out £2,401.98 in corporation tax on merchandise sales from back in May and June 2019 – unfortunately, due to the level of our reserves, we did not qualify for a deferment of this payment from HM Revenue and Customs, although VAT for the last quarter has been postponed until 2021.
Progress on securing control of the Old Spotted Dog Ground has not ceased because of the coronavirus lockdown and so we also spent £2,820 on a market valuation of the ground, which is an essential prerequisite for obtaining the finances we need to take over the ground.
CLAPTON AGAINST CORONA HARDSHIP FUND
Many individual members of Clapton CFC are also struggling financially right now, which is why we set up Clapton Against Corona, our hardship fund to support our community through this difficult period. Find out how to contribute to the Fund here.
In April 2020, the income and spending for the Hardship Fund was:
| Donations received for CCFC supporters | £5,309.19 |
| Payments made from Hardship Fund | £1,860.00 |
In total, £5,337.31 has been received and £2,210 has been paid out so far from the Hardship Fund since it was set up in March.
If you are a member and need help, please see this advice on how to apply for support.
Expenditure
| Merchandise production costs | £5,535.16 |
| Old Spotted Dog Ground market valuation | £2,820.00 |
| Corporation tax May-June 2019 | £2,401.98 |
| Postage | £1,186.06 |
| Merchandise refunds | £442.18 |
| Walter Tull memorial banner | £200.00 |
| Printing stickers | £36.01 |
| Online store subscription | £35.00 |
| Accounting software | £28.80 |
| TOTAL | £12,685.19 |
Income
| Membership * | £457.48 |
| Monthly direct debit donations * | £99.40 |
| Merchandise * | £72.22 |
| *after fees | |
| TOTAL | £629.10 |