On Wednesday 17 December, England Ice Hockey and Scottish Ice Hockey Members will be invited to vote on proposals to bring the governance of ice hockey together as one, in what would be a historic moment for the sport.
Ice Hockey UK, England Ice Hockey and Scottish Ice Hockey believe that, to both serve the sport better now and grow the game over the longer term, there is greater strength and more opportunity in operating as a single national governing body.
Together As One, ice hockey in the UK will focus on five core principles, which will underpin the work of the executive team:
- Professionalise to Perform
- Enhance the Experience
- Member-Centricity
- Sustainability for Generations to Come
- Fully Recognise Potential
A number of workstreams will sit behind these principles to turn them into reality, led and delivered by the Executive Team. A further breakdown of these workstreams is available here.
The meeting and the resolution
A general meeting of members will be held for both England Ice Hockey and Scottish Ice Hockey on 17 December.
In the formal notice sent to members, directors and auditors, a proposed special resolution will be set out, asking members to agree that they wish to proceed with creating a merged entity.
If approved, this will be followed by an extensive period of detailed consultation, funded by UK Sport, with all sections using the five guiding principles to reshape the operations and delivery of the sport.
England Ice Hockey and Scottish Ice Hockey will each invite their members entered on the register of members (their affiliated clubs and teams), any honorary members, together with their respective boards, to attend the general meeting.
In line with their Articles of Association, each member is entitled to receive notice of, attend and cast one vote at the meeting (subject to being duly registered and all fees being paid).
To pass the special resolution, at least 75% of votes cast on the day must be in favour. Members will have the right to appoint a proxy (or proxies), up to 48 hours before the meeting.
Henry Staelens, chief executive officer of Ice Hockey UK and England Ice Hockey, commented: “The upcoming vote is just the start of the process to create an ice hockey community, together as one.
“Since we made the announcement of our request to members to support the vote, we have had terrific engagement with the community, welcoming their comments and thoughts.
“I am delighted to hear so much support from within the ice hockey community, but also from UK Sport and the home nation sports councils, who are all fully supportive.
“We are on this journey together and I would welcome any member of the community to reach out to me directly via CEO@englandicehockey.com, where I will answer fully.”
About the Ice Hockey UK, England Ice Hockey and Scottish Ice Hockey merger
Ice Hockey UK, England Ice Hockey and Scottish Ice Hockey will call an extraordinary general meeting for their respective organisations on Wednesday 17 December 2025, where the boards will encourage members to vote in favour of merging the bodies.
Formal notice, voting papers and full details will be issued to voting members of the organisations in due course.
In advance of the vote, England Ice Hockey and Scottish Ice Hockey will host a number of meetings with key stakeholders and groups across the sport, to ensure the merger delivers improvement and certainty in relation to their requirements.
Additionally, a drop-in Q&A session led by Henry Staelens and Grant King (chief operating officer, IHUK & EIH) will be held on 26 November 2025 via Microsoft Teams, which will be open to all registered voting members of EIH and SIH. Details have been issued to members on how to attend the meeting.
Full information and updates on the proposed merger will be shared across England Ice Hockey and Scottish Ice Hockey channels in the coming weeks.
Members are welcome to submit any questions or comments about the merger in advance via memberservices@englandicehockey.com for England and media@scottishicehockey.co.uk for Scotland.
England Ice Hockey and Scottish Ice Hockey staff will ensure all queries are addressed during the sessions or in the follow-up materials.
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