PAUL Jewell has been told he will be backed in the transfer market as he looks to fund a potential promotion push this season.

The Blues might be 15th in the Championship but the tight nature of the second tier means they remain on the coat-tails of the play-off places.

And on the day Town announced they have made a profit in the 12 months leading up to June, Jewell, who has brought in 13 new permanent and loan signings, has been reassured that the spending doesn’t have to stop.

Chief executive Simon Clegg said: “There has been a lot of investment this season. The January window is approaching but there are a number of games before that to get back to winning ways.

“But if the right players become available at the right price, the owner will continue to support the manager.”

The club yesterday released their draft annual report and accounts which revealed that owner Marcus Evans had invested almost �7million more in the last year – despite the fact Town remain more than �66m in debt.

And the finances were bolstered by the Blues’ Carling Cup run last season and the big money sales of Jon Walters and Connor Wickham – even if payments for the latter are staggered by clauses rather than the full �8.1m paid up front.

Clegg said: “Every Championship club is struggling but I can’t believe many other clubs will be able to turn in a profit this year. But the only reason we could is because it was an extraordinary year.

“The report does show how reliant we are on Marcus Evans. But our number one priority is promotion to the Premier League. That is the undoubted focus of the club, the manager, myself and the owner – we are all completely aligned in that regard. All our time and efforts are focused on securing that goal.”

The report and accounts, which will be sent out to shareholders in advance of the Ipswich Town Football Club plc AGM on Monday December 5, showed that Town had made a �136,000 in the 12-month period, before interest and tax have been deducted.

It also revealed that the turnover for the year had increased by 10% – mainly due to the club’s run to the Carling Cup semi-final, including associated gate receipts and TV revenues, as well as additional income from the Premier League in the form of enhanced solidarity payments.

Staff costs had been brought down to 98.9% in comparison to 109.4% in 2009/2010 but the report showed there had been a small drop in commercial income, attributed to the fact the previous year accounts took in the Pink music concert in June 2010.

The 12 months calculated saw four players brought in, including strikers Jason Scotland and Michael Chopra, with the sales of Wickham and Walters generating fees in the region of �11m.

dave.gooderham@eadt.co.uk