Gillingham made a pre-tax profit of £188,438 during last season.

Turnover also increased slightly, up 2%, to a figure of £5.6m.

The club are still seeking outside investment, however.

Chairman Paul Scally, reporting on the yearly accounts made up to 31 May, 2015, said: “The board continues to seek additional external investment and plans to relocate the stadium to a new local site are ongoing.

“The local authority are supportive and it is hoped an outline planning proposal will be submitted in 2016 for a new stadium and appropriate enabling development.”

The club are looking to build a 24,000-seater stadium at Mill Hill in Gillingham, across the road from their training ground. Their current home ground is valued at £3m.

Mr Scally, who has been at the helm now for over 20 years, received £233,161 for consultancy services, up from £197,997 the previous year.

Gillingham’s profit was put down to player trading.

Transfer fees accounted for £975,327, a large share of that was likely to be from the sell-on fee recovered when former youth player Ryan Bertrand moved from Chelsea to Southampton, for a reported £10m.

The figure was similar to the transfer fees received the year before, highlighting the club’s need to bring in player sale revenues.

Player wages were slightly down for the year, with previous manager Peter Taylor adding several young players to the squad, including Luke Norris and Brennan Dickenson. That figure fell by around £100,000.

Striker Danny Kedwell was transferred to Ebbsfleet United shortly after Taylor was sacked.

The club showed a profit on ordinary activity before tax of £188,438, up from the 2014 figure of £11,206.

Turnover included £718,448 on season tickets, down from £795,358 the year before. Match ticket sales were up, however, slightly, at a figure of £677,743.

Staff figures in total dropped dramatically, from 89 to 69.

The club owed £1.8m to Three Directors Limited, of whom Mr Scally is a director, along with the two other GFC directors Mike Quarrington and Michael Anderson.

Mr Anderson was owed £460,642 as of 31 May, 2015.

Gillingham are under the control of GFC Holdings Limited, whose sole shareholder is Mr Scally.

It was a season which in March saw caterers Centerplate pull out of the club. Mr Scally is in the process of trying to reclaim money back from the American company.