Director banned

Football club chairman Peter Ridsdale has been disqualified from acting as a company director for seven-and-a-half years following an investigation by The Insolvency Service.

The former Leeds United, Barnsley and Cardiff City chairman has given an undertaking to the secretary of state for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS), barring him from acting as a company director and from managing or in any way controlling a company.

Ridsdale did not dispute that between May 2007 and March 2009 he acted improperly and “in breach of his duties” to his company WH Sports Group Limited (WHSG) by channelling payments into his personal bank account.

The inquiry found that payments totalling £347,000 - received for invoices raised by WHSG for services provided to a football club of which he was the chairman - were paid into personal bank accounts held in his own name, to the detriment of WHSG and its creditors.

He failed to disclose the relevant transactions to the liquidator of WHSG, who did not become aware of them until July 2010 when information was provided by the club.

He also failed to ensure that WHSG complied with its statutory obligations to prepare and file accounts with the registrar of companies by the due dates for three successive accounting periods.

In addition he failed to ensure that WHSG complied with its statutory obligations to make corporation tax, PAYE and NICs and VAT.

At liquidation WHSG’s liabilities included £166,421 in unpaid corporation tax, £102,279 in unpaid PAYE and NICs, and £173,653 relating to unpaid VAT.

WHSG traded from 2003 to 2007 and was used by Ridsdale to provide sports and leisure consultancy services to football clubs. The company went into liquidation on 22 April 2009 with assets of £22,592 and liabilities of at least £478,698, including £442,353 owed to HMRC.

Claire Entwistle, director of Company Investigations North at The Insolvency Service, said: “As someone who has had many directorships, Mr Ridsdale ought to be aware of the responsibilities that come with such a position.

“One of the main purposes of the Company Directors Disqualification Act is to ensure that proper standards of conduct of company directors are maintained, and these disqualifications should serve as a reminder that The Insolvency Service will investigate unacceptable conduct and deal robustly with directors who harm creditors by using unacceptable financial practice.”

His wife and co-director of WHSG, Sophie Victoria Ridsdale, was also disqualified after providing a similar undertaking which will run for three-and-a-half years.