The creation of a supporters' trust at Scunthorpe United would have great benefits for the club and fans, according to the group looking to drive forward the idea.

As well as providing an extra source of money, in the form of shares, the trust are also targeting a place on the board, which would give fans a greater say in how the club is run.

An open meeting will be held at Glanford Park tonight (7pm) where a mandate, in the form of a show of hands, will be required to allow the group to take the next step in creating the trust.

"It's about ensuring supporters are in the decision making process from the start," said Luke Thornhill, a member of the working group behind the idea.

"With the best will in the world, Steve Wharton (United chairman) and the other directors don't go stand on the terraces and don't always know what fans want.

"We will do as our members tell us to do. If there are any key decisions we will put them to our members and vote how they tell us to vote.

"The main benefits for the club will be the extra money coming in through share purchases.

"And we hope it will open up the decision making process.

"We hope it will lead to a good working relationship with the club where we can meet regularly and give them a understanding of what fans want.

"The chairman and the general manager often say we're at the heart of the club; with a trust we can make sure we're there on the board and right at the heart of the club when decisions are made, rather than people guessing what we want."

Thornhill hopes with that would come a better understanding of how the club works, leading to greater transparency in the decision making process.

"You see all the time and hear on the terraces, fans complain, 'where's the money gone?'," he said.

"At the moment people just guess because the board of directors, quite rightly to a point, won't explain what goes on in the boardroom.

"If we were to put our people in and have regular meetings, we would respect whatever confidentiality procedures there are, but hope we can reassure our members that the club made a decision for a reason."

If they get the 'yes' vote they need, the group hope to have a fully operational trust by the start of next season.

The model has proved effective elsewhere, including at Exeter City and AFC Wimbledon, and has the backing of those at Glanford Park.

"The group approached us to see what our thoughts would be and we said we'd do what we could to support them," said general manager David Beeby.

"Financially, it's a good thing and offers another means of communicating with the fans.

"The football club is all about the supporters and the local community, and the more involvement we can get with fans, the better really."