St Mirren could become fan-owned as soon as next year thanks to a proposed partnership with Paisley charity Kibble.

The St. Mirren Independent Supporters Association, SMiSA, already have a majority shareholding in St Mirren after jointly buying the club with current chairman Gordon Scott in 2016.

SMiSA expected to complete phase two of their takeover in 2026, but now a new potential link up with social enterprise Kibble could see the supporters group become majority owners by the end of 2021.

SMISA chair and Paisley MSP George Adam said: “St Mirren’s place at the heart of life in the town is precious. We created the Buy The Buds campaign back in 2016 because we knew there could be no one better to safeguard that than the people who will care for it most – the fans.

“The deal unveiled today will deliver that – but it will do it in half the time, for half the cost and crucially, it will help create a stronger St Mirren.

“Kibble can bring new resource and expertise to help St Mirren grow as a business, but more than than it can help grow the club’s reach into the community of Paisley.

“Over the next few weeks, we’ll be talking to our members about what this means – and hopefully they will be as excited as we are by the possibilities.”

Kibble chief executive Jim Gillespie said: “We are incredibly excited by this important plan for both organisations, both of which were founded in Paisley in Victorian times and are a part of the town’s history.

"The purpose of our proposal is to step up Kibble’s young workforce development programme and improve the future prospects of our young people, including employability options, skills and qualifications. Our executive team has been working on a strategic plan to maximise our opportunities along these lines within St Mirren FC.

“Our plan involves Kibble utilising all of St Mirren’s facilities, including the training ground at Ralston, to provide these opportunities in areas like catering, hospitality and apprenticeships in ground keeping and the various skills required for stadium maintenance."

Should members agree to the deal, instead of targeting 71 per cent of the club SMiSA will take on 50.1 per cent  - which will still make them majority owners - allowing them to complete the takeover much sooner than in the initial deal agreed in 2016.

The vote will take place at the Glynhill Hotel in Renfrew on Thursday 6 February after a Q&A session.