In May of this year Bedford Blues Chairman, Geoff Irvine announced he would be standing down from his positon as Chairman of the Club at the end of the 2015/16 season in a meeting of interested parties.

When the announcement was made a group was formed to take a look from outside the Club at the future of rugby in Bedford and how the club was managed.

This group was chaired by Jo Marks, Chair of the Marks Trust, a charity focused on enhancing opportunities for the community of Bedford. They have now completed the first phase of their work, a consultation document including a survey for expressions of interest and comments. This document is available on http://www.markstrust.org/bedfordrugby.php.

The Club would encourage supporters, plus their family and friends, to visit the above link and read both the vision document and Trust press release before giving their thoughts to the Charity on all matters Bedford Rugby.

It is imperative that as many people are encouraged to complete this survey as this will be used to determine the future shape of Bedford Blues and the progression of rugby in Bedford. Decisions are imminent and input is necessary to put a transition plan in place.

Commenting on the work already done, Geoff Irvine said: “I would like to thank the group for all their hard work thus far, in particular Jo Marks who for a non-rugby person has demonstrated a high level of enthusiasm throughout this project and would not wish for her time to be wasted.”

Jo Marks, representing the shared view of the Marks Trust and consultancy group added: “I agreed to undertake this consultation through our local based charity, whose objectives are to promote innovation, creativity and comradeship amongst all ages. I believe rugby is a very important part of Bedford and the views of the whole county and Bedfordshire businesses should be considered, as this decision will affect future generations and the town itself.”

Please share this link and email with as many people as possible and help shape the future of rugby in Bedford. Registration will close on 30th October 2014 so please log in to http://www.markstrust.org/bedfordrugby.php to register your opinion – act now before it’s too late.