The Birmingham Irish Club's success depends on the support of the local community

A NEW management team at the Birmingham Irish Club is being tipped to put the club on a firm footing for a vibrant future at the heart of the rapidly developing Irish Quarter.
That is the verdict of the chairman of the trustees Cllr Mike Nangle and fellow trustee Pat O'Neill, who have spoken out in the wake of recent reports implying a crisis at the Digbeth club.
Both trustees have also revealed their disappointment at the recent reports, which they say give a totally misleading impression of what is actually going on.
Instead Mr O'Neill, who also chairs the Birmingham Irish Forum, and Cllr Nangle urged the Irish community to get behind the club and have a hand in creating a state-of-the art facility that will serve the needs of future generations.
Three new trustees have been appointed to the board of trustees at the Irish Club and a company is also being brought in to oversee its running.
The changes are in line with the overall plan developed for the club, since an injection of cash by the Irish government in 2001.
Both the Irish government, through the Irish Embassy in Britain and the Federation of Irish Clubs are instrumental in the changes that are now taking place but to all involved with the club they comes as no surprise.
Mr O'Neill said the changes would be a boost to the club as it embarks on a long journey to re-invent itself, culminating in a brand new facility, which it is hoped will be created within five years.
Speaking of the new board of trustees, details of which are soon to be unveiled, he said: "It is a broad church of people with lots of experience in different fields and different walks of life."
The involvement of the Irish government followed a dark period in the club's history when it got into serious debt and was bailed out with a cash injection of around three-quarters-of-a-million pounds.
The revitalised club enjoyed a change in its fortunes, though Mr O'Neill did admit it got into "a bit of financial difficulty" eight or nine months ago, running up a debt of around £40,000.
Cllr Nangle said: "The government have come back in through the embassy and the federation to have a health check and have appointed a manager."
Mr O'Neill added: "The conclusion was to get a professional manager and management team in. We believe the club has turned a corner.

Chairman of Trustees, Cllr Mike Nangle and fellow Trustee Pat O’Neill responding to the recent criticism of The Irish Club

"It was never in serious financial problems, though it was getting that way. We managed to catch it in time and it is the start, we hope, of a new era. We are looking to the future - the bigger picture."
Mr O'Neill and Cllr Nangle say the next few years will be an exciting time for the Irish Club and are calling on the community to get behind it. In return they have pledged to be open as regards developments for the future.
Cllr Nangle said: "We have a duty to pass this on to future generations. That is the vision that we have. It is incumbent on us and the Irish government to be able to say 'here you are, it is all up and running'. In years to come there will be a whole new breed of second and third generation Irish people who will be running the club but it will be a different club - not the one that is there today.
"Some of us could have said ‘let's forget it and go and have a quiet life’ but that would be the easy way out. It is better to be inside the tent helping out rather than be outside the tent making remarks that aren't really true."
The situation the Irish Club is in is described as a "unique" one, given the development of the Irish Quarter. With the club occupying a prime site in the midst of development it is likely to benefit from investment and ultimately be rebuilt, bigger and better than before.
But the trustees firmly believe its success depends on the support of the community.
Mr O'Neill said: "For this to be a success we need the full backing of everybody to give us the opportunity. Times are not going to be easy but if we can get the support of our community and everyone is involved we will we will walk away with what we hope will be a state-of-the-art Irish Club.
"We hope to be as transparent as we can. When the time is right and we feel we have got our feet under the table we hope to be able to tell people a little more. In the meantime we would like people to support us."
The new management, an outside company, was due to come in to take over the management of the club on Friday February 10. No staff changes were anticipated, with the existing employees of the club remaining in place.
Mr O'Neill said: "A management structure is coming in but existing staff are going to stay. There will be a general manager to manage the whole outfit. They are a professional outfit. It needed a professional outfit to come in and this was a recommendation of the Federation of Irish Clubs. It is a company that will be answerable to the trustees, the federation and the Irish government.
"It is something that would have to have happened sooner or later. Things have to change if we are going to move forward with regeneration. We have to bring in the experts and we feel it is the right time to bring them in. But these people will have to prove within six months that they can be successful.
Cllr Nangle said the financial viability of the club was key to its future.
"It is a club but it is also a commercial business and it has to pay its way. But the Federation of Irish Societies with the support of the Irish Embassy and the Irish government can see its potential and future. With the redevelopment of Digbeth we are on a prime site for culture, conferences, dances, weddings, hooleys - you name it."
Although there is uncertainty about what the future holds, Mr O'Neill said he hoped the club would remain on its existing site.
"The new club is a little longer down the road, but not that far and we will be having meetings with developers and landowners. And we will be asking the community to assist in terms of telling us what they would like to see. We want to hear the views of people.
"We are getting a golden opportunity to have something unique. The Irish Quarter is the first of its kind in the UK and a unique opportunity but we must work together.
Mr O'Neill also paid tribute to the trustees who recently stepped down, to make way for their successors, saying: "Those people must not be forgotten but remembered and thanked."
People running organisations connected to the Irish Club will be contacted in the near future to let them know what is happening and how they will be involved in future developments.
Cllr Nangle admitted he would not continue to head the board of trustees if he did not believe the club had a rosy future.
"I wouldn't be involved if I didn't think it was something we can hand over to the second and third generation Irish. That is the ultimate aim.
"If I didn't think the Irish Government was serious in helping us to maintain an Irish Club in Birmingham, that there wasn't a future, I would have walked - I wouldn't be here.”
His sentiments were echoed by Mr O'Neill who said: "It is the aim of the embassy to hand it back to the community but for that to happen it has to be sustainable and workable. It has to be run as a business.
"This is essential for the long-term future of the Irish Club and the Irish Quarter. The Irish Club is the pinnacle of the Irish Quarter but in its present form it does not fit in to the design so it will be changed one way or another."
The future could also see further cash coming from the Irish government if required.
Cllr Nangle said: "They have offered to support us financially if and when required."
Mr O'Neill concluded: "Through the Irish Forum the trustees will be writing to the chairs and representatives of different bodies across the city to explain in more detail what the future entails and what is expected of everyone.”