A campaign supporting Wrexham’s bid to gain UK Government ‘levelling up’ funding for the transformation of the Racecourse Ground has gained thousands of signatures during its first week.
The Stadium for the North campaign has generated more than 6,700 registers of support via a Change.org petition since debuting last week. It has been supported by several high-profile figures such as Wales football icons Mickey Thomas and John Hartson.
The campaign has been launched to support Wrexham Council’s proposed funding application to receive a grant from the UK Government’s Levelling Up Fund, which is set to be submitted in July.
‘The Wrexham Gateway’ application would include funding for improvements to Wrexham FC’s 10,000-capacity stadium that would enable it to host the Welsh international football and rugby teams for the first time in more than 20 years.
Proposed enhancements include a new 5,500 stand, improved media, broadcast and floodlight facilities, a 400-space multi-storey car park and groundworks for a convention centre and hotel. The bid includes a mixture of public and private funding to achieve its ambition.
“The funding is vital if North Wales is to realise its ambition of having facilities at the Racecourse Ground capable of hosting international sport,” said a spokesperson for the campaign.
“Currently there are no facilities in the North of Wales that are capable of hosting international football or rugby and therefore by default all internationals must be played in an area south of the M4 in Wales. This lack of facilities means that many young people and families across North and Mid Wales are excluded from these events due to the cost and in some cases the mid-week timing of events.
“There can be long term health benefits of inspiring young people to take part in sport and access to internationals can play an important role in attracting participation.”
Image: Markbarnes / This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license / Resized to fit
Share this