Letters of stadium support hit 4,500 as campaign continues

Residents in north Manchester are throwing more and more support behind our proposed stadium.

Almost 4,500 letters of support have now been gathered across Moston and the surrounding areas for submission to Manchester City Council’s planners.

The letters have been signed as a result of campaigning in north Manchester by FC United volunteers and Moston residents of the M40 4FC support group.

General manager Andy Walsh said: "This is a fantastic response from the people of Moston and the surrounding areas. It seems thousands have recognised the merits of our proposal to bring a community stadium to Ronald Johnson Playing Fields and would welcome our investment in the area.

"We could not have done it without the help of the M40 4FC group who have pulled out all the stops to spread the word about our plans and campaign for support - I’d like to thank them and all our volunteers who have helped get us to this point."

Campaigning has included stalls at markets and supermarkets around north Manchester - volunteers were even queuing for a pitch at Smithfield market at 4.30am last Sunday.

These letters are on top of the letters and emails sent in by individuals from across Manchester and the region, as well as several hundred signatures on petitions.

The M40 4FC group has been involved in leafleting, door-knocking and engaging with Moston residents to inform them about FC United and our plans, allowing many genuine fears and concerns to be allayed and "urban myths" to be corrected.

Most of the group were not previously FC fans, but the hours and the energy they have put into the project has been staggering.

But there is still more to do and we still need FC United supporters to volunteer for further campaigning.

Although a number of our supporters have helped with leafleting, we have continued to draw these volunteers from a fairly small pool and we would like some new faces to come forward to help our fans and the M40 4FC group.

Andy Walsh added: "We are all busy, we all have responsibilities, but if you can spare some time - even a couple of hours - to help with more doorknocking in the area, you could be helping shape the future of our club.

"As much as it’s important to have Moston residents involved in this campaigning, it’s vital to also have good representation from FC United supporters to really get across the main points about our club. Anything you can do to help would be hugely appreciated."

Teams will be out in Moston to engage residents and gather more letters of support this Thursday - August 25th - and Thursday, September 1st, throughout the day.

If you can help, or would like to put your name down for a future event, please email Phil Morris on philmorris@fc-utd.co.uk - thanks in advance.