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Carol Shanahan

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Carol Shanahan
OBE
Shanahan in Port Vale colours in 2022
BornDecember 1957 (1957) (age 67)
Skegness, England
NationalityBritish
OccupationBusinessperson
Chairperson of Port Vale
In office
2019–present
Preceded byNorman Smurthwaite
Personal details
SpouseKevin Shanahan
ChildrenKate, Rosie, Patrick, Francesca

Carol Ann Shanahan OBE (born December 1957) is an English businesswoman and club chairperson of Port Vale Football Club.

Business career

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Shanahan was born in December 1957[1] in Skegness. She moved to West Bromwich at the age of six to live with her mother, who was the secretary to the West Bromwich Albion club doctor; it was at The Hawthorns that Shanahan first became interested in football.[2] She left school without any formal qualifications. At age 17, she became the first female main-frame computer operator at Hoskins Systems in Birmingham.[3][4] She met Kevin Shanahan in 1979, a fellow IT worker.[5] The pair would later marry and have four children – Kate, Rosie, Patrick and Francesca – before founding fintech company Synectics Solutions in February 1992. Synectics work to prevent fraud and has international clients that include governments, banks, building societies and insurance companies.[5] Originally based in Newcastle-under-Lyme, the company moved to Burslem in 2015, in a large building next to Vale Park.[5] The company received one of the Queen's Awards for Enterprise in 2019, leading her to state that "To win an award of this calibre is a fantastic achievement, contributed to by every one of our 360 employees. Of the many awards we have won over the past few years, this is the pinnacle of our work to date."[6] This came two years after Shanahan was named as 'Director of the Year for Leadership in Corporate Social Responsibility' at the Institute of Directors awards.[7] The Shanahans set up hospitality firm Summit Hospitality after finding they had extra rooms in Synectics' new building.[3] She was awarded an honorary doctorate by Staffordshire University in 2017 and also became chair of the Port Vale Foundation Trust.[5] She founded the Hubb Foundation in February 2019, a charitable organisation to help underprivileged children in Stoke-on-Trent.[5]

Chair of Port Vale

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Having first attempted to buy Port Vale in 2015 and had a £1.25 million rejected in May 2017, she and Kevin finally bought out Norman Smurthwaite for more than £5 million in May 2019 following months of negotiation.[8][5][9] Initially she and Kevin were co-chairs of the club before Kevin stepped down to leave Carol as the sole chair in January 2020.[10] The next month she was voted as the fourth best owner in English football in a poll carried out by the 'Against League 3' pressure group.[9]

"The way we viewed it...yes we have paid far too much but you look at it as a business deal. So, as a business person if you were going to assess it, you would say why on earth have you done that! But that isn't how we viewed it. We really viewed it as almost a loved one was held hostage and someone had to pay the ransom. The club would have gone into administration, it would have folded."

— Shanahan explained why she felt compelled to buy the Port Vale in May 2019.[11]

Shanahan voted with the chairs of the other League Two clubs to end the 2019–20 season after 37 games due to the COVID-19 pandemic in England, causing Vale to finish one place outside the play-offs; CEO Colin Garlick said that the club had voted for the proposal despite meaning they narrowly missed out on the play-offs as it would help to secure the financial future of all the clubs in the division.[12] Shanahan said she "came away shaking" from the vote, but made her decision for "the greater good" of the game.[13] A BBC Sport study predicted that Vale would have finished seventh and reached the play-offs if the season had played out.[14] To help the local area during the crisis, Shanahan turned the club into a community hub, delivering food and care packages to the north of the city and working closely with the city council, schools and charities.[15]

Shanahan was appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in the 2020 Birthday Honours for services to the community of Stoke-on-Trent during the COVID-19 epidemic.[16][17] She sacked club manager John Askey in January 2021, following a two-month losing run that saw the team drop from the play-off places to 17th in the table.[18] The following month she appointed David Flitcroft as the club's first ever director of football, working alongside new managerial appointment Darrell Clarke – the club paid Walsall a compensation fee to sign Clarke.[19] She was given an honorary degree by Keele University in May 2021 and named as a member on the EFL Trust Board three months later.[20][21] She was named as Community Heroine of the Year at The Women of the Year Luncheon & Awards in April 2022.[22] Clarke returned from a close family bereavement to lead Vale through the League Two play-off semi-finals at the end of the 2021–22 season.[23] Promotion was secured with a 3–0 victory over Mansfield Town in the final.[24] She initiated a shake-up in the club's boardroom in April 2023, whilst remaining a "hands on owner".[25] Darrell Clarke was also sacked later that month and his assistant, Andy Crosby, was appointed as the club's new manager.[26][27] Crosby was sacked on 5 February 2024.[28] With fan opinion turning hostile towards Flitcroft, Shanahan published a lengthy open letter on the club website defending Flitcroft and his achievements as Port Vale's director of football.[29] Darren Moore was hired as the club's new manager on a five-and-a-half-year contract, which Moore said was "a testament to the long-term vision of the club".[30] David Flitcroft was sacked. Port Vale was relegated at the end of the 2023–24 season. At this point, Shanahan apologised to the fans and stated her intent for the club to gain promotion again.[31] She also decided to do less public speaking after she was filmed without her knowledge while giving an after-match speech in the Valiant Suite.[32]

References

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  1. ^ "Carol Ann SHANAHAN - Personal Appointments (free information from Companies House)". beta.companieshouse.gov.uk. Retrieved 19 April 2020.
  2. ^ "CAROL SHANAHAN: HOW TO SUCCEED IN BUSINESS - WITH ZERO QUALIFICATIONS from Adrian Goldberg's Talk Show". www.stitcher.com. Retrieved 25 September 2020.
  3. ^ a b James, Laura (19 November 2019). "Carol reveals the secrets behind her and her husband Kevin's success". Stoke Sentinel. Retrieved 28 March 2020.
  4. ^ "IWD20: Seven hats of Carol Shanahan". Port Vale F.C. 10 March 2020. Retrieved 28 March 2020.
  5. ^ a b c d e f Baggaley, Michael (7 May 2019). "Who are Carol and Kevin Shanahan: All about Port Vale's new owners". Stoke Sentinel. Retrieved 28 March 2020.
  6. ^ James, Laura (30 April 2019). "'Thank you ma'am' Staffordshire businesses celebrate Queen's Award honour". Stoke Sentinel. Retrieved 28 March 2020.
  7. ^ Winter, Henry (1 August 2019). "Carol Shanahan – the 'female Jesus' bringing a sense of community back to Port Vale". The Times. Retrieved 28 March 2020.
  8. ^ Baggaley, Mike (5 May 2017). "WATCH: Burslem-based IT firm makes £1.25m bid to buy Port Vale". Stoke Sentinel. Retrieved 5 May 2017.
  9. ^ a b Baggaley, Michael (6 February 2020). "'Fantastic' - Port Vale's owners honoured in national vote of supporters". Stoke Sentinel. Retrieved 29 March 2020.
  10. ^ Baggaley, Michael (30 January 2020). "Port Vale's owners unveil new board". Stoke Sentinel. Retrieved 31 January 2020.
  11. ^ Baggaley, Michael (11 May 2019). "'Someone had to pay the ransom' - Port Vale owners on why they bought club". Stoke Sentinel. Retrieved 28 March 2020.
  12. ^ Baggaley, Michael (15 May 2020). "Port Vale give up promotion hopes to try to avert League Two financial crisis". Stoke Sentinel. Retrieved 15 May 2020.
  13. ^ "League Two: Port Vale chair left 'shaking' after voting to end season". BBC Sport. 15 May 2020. Retrieved 17 May 2020.
  14. ^ Pilnick, Brent (17 May 2020). "League Two: University of Reading experts predict how table would have looked". BBC Sport. Retrieved 17 May 2020.
  15. ^ Baggaley, Michael (6 April 2020). "'Work together' - Port Vale owner on financial challenges for League Two clubs". Stoke Sentinel. Retrieved 6 April 2020.
  16. ^ "No. 63142". The London Gazette (Supplement). 10 October 2020. p. B67.
  17. ^ McInnes, Kathie (9 October 2020). "'From one O-level to an OBE!' - Carol Shanahan awarded for her community work". StokeonTrentLive. Retrieved 10 October 2020.
  18. ^ "Port Vale part company with Askey". BBC Sport. 4 January 2021. Retrieved 4 January 2021.
  19. ^ "Vale name Flitcroft director of football". BBC Sport. 8 February 2021. Retrieved 8 February 2021.
  20. ^ McInnes, Kathie (19 May 2021). "Two drama queens, vaccine champ and football club boss get honorary degrees". StokeonTrentLive. Retrieved 19 May 2021.
  21. ^ "Carol Shanahan OBE Named as EFL Trust Board Member". Port Vale F.C. 23 August 2021. Retrieved 23 August 2021.
  22. ^ "WOMEN OF THE YEAR ANNOUNCES CAROL SHANAHAN OBE AS COMMUNITY HEROINE AWARD WINNER". Port Vale F.C. 2 April 2022. Retrieved 2 April 2022.
  23. ^ Baggaley, Michael (19 May 2022). "Port Vale heading to Wembley after dramatic shoot-out win over Swindon". StokeonTrentLive. Retrieved 20 May 2022.
  24. ^ Aloia, Andrew (28 May 2022). "Vale beat 10-man Mansfield to reach League One". BBC Sport. Retrieved 28 May 2022.
  25. ^ Baggaley, Michael (4 April 2023). "Major roles for Flitcroft, Hancock and Halkett in Port Vale shake-up". StokeonTrentLive. Retrieved 5 April 2023.
  26. ^ "Club Statement | Port Vale part company with manager Darrell Clarke". Port Vale F.C. 17 April 2023. Retrieved 17 April 2023.
  27. ^ "Port Vale FC Appoint Andy Crosby as Manager". Port Vale F.C. 12 May 2023. Retrieved 12 May 2023.
  28. ^ "Andy Crosby: Port Vale sack manager after one win in eight games". BBC Sport. 5 February 2024. Retrieved 5 February 2024.
  29. ^ Shanahan OBE, Carol (7 February 2024). "An open letter from Carol". Port Vale F.C. Retrieved 7 February 2024.
  30. ^ "Port Vale FC Appoint Darren Moore as Manager". Port Vale F.C. 13 February 2024. Retrieved 13 February 2024.
  31. ^ Baggaley, Mike (21 April 2024). "Apologies and pledges as Vale are relegated". Valiant's Substack. Retrieved 21 April 2024.
  32. ^ Baggaley, Mike (3 May 2024). "Questions answered about recruitment, budget and plans". Valiant's Substack. Retrieved 8 May 2024.
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