Chris Ingram
Bought Woking Football Club in 2002 when it was in financial crisis and owns the stadium ground via Kingfield Community Sports Centre Limited (KCSC). His company was central to the GolDev arrangement — GolDev was chosen by the football club and then approached the council for a development agreement, leading to the problematic £250 million loan offer.
Key Actions
- Purchased Woking FC in 2002 and owns the stadium ground through KCSC
- KCSC's land ownership was central to the GolDev development arrangement
- Council officers who were KCSC directors simultaneously negotiated the £250m GolDev loan
- Facilitated the relationship between GolDev and the council that led to the problematic loan offer
Details
Chris Ingram purchased Woking Football Club in February 2002 when the club was in financial crisis. He owns the Kingfield stadium ground through Kingfield Community Sports Centre Limited (KCSC).
KCSC's ownership of the stadium land was central to the GolDev development arrangement. GolDev was selected by Woking FC and then approached Woking Borough Council for a development agreement to redevelop the stadium and build approximately 1,000 homes on and around the site.
Crucially, council officers Peter Bryant (Monitoring Officer) and Leigh Clarke (Section 151 Officer) were simultaneously directors of KCSC while negotiating the GolDev loan on behalf of the council — a conflict of interest that an independent investigator found was 'driving a coach and horses through the Nolan principles' of public office.
The relationship between KCSC, Woking FC, GolDev, and the council created a web of conflicts that the Grant Thornton report found had not been properly managed or mitigated.
Sources
- Grant Thornton Public Interest Report— Grant Thornton / Woking Borough Council