Shrewsbury Town chief executive Brian Caldwell delighted to reach safe-standing target

Town reached their £62,500 goal to have rail seating at the Montgomery Waters Meadow.

They are set to be the first club in England and Wales to have safe-standing and they hope – with certification from the Safety Advisory Group – to have it in the stadium before the end of the season.

“It’s fantastic that we have eventually got there,” said Caldwell.

“We can plan ahead now with trying to get the certification and everything else we need in order to have a safe-standing area here at Shrewsbury.

“We’ve got to thank all the people, nearly a thousand fans who have donated to the cause. It’s just great to get it over the line.

“For us to be the first club in the country – in England and Wales – to potentially install this, it’s fantastic for the football club.

“The next step is the Safety Advisory Group, who are locally-based, to make sure we have all of the certification in place.

“We are working towards January or February to have that in place so we can hopefully get it installed at some point this season.”

He added: “We’ve had a couple of meetings with the group and have one coming up, which the Supporters’ Parliament is attending.

“There is a process of being ready for installation, we can’t do anything until we have the approval of the Safety Advisory Group.”

Mike Davis, from the Shrewsbury Town Supporters’ Parliament, is also delighted to see the target reached.

“I am really, really pleased. It’s been phenomenal, from start to finish,” he said.

“We have had support from up and down the country, from different clubs, and our fans have really got behind it as well.

“This was not just about Shrewsbury Town, but the wider football community. For Shrewsbury to be pioneering that is fantastic.

“We have really enjoyed the project, meeting different people and different groups. It’s a huge relief getting to that point.”