Last Kop barrier raffled off for Nightingale House Hospice

Phil Salmon, from AEC Engineering and Wrexham Supporters Trust donated the last Kop barrier to Nightingale House Hospice for them to raise money through a raffle to help fund vital funds for patient care. Taking the Kop barrier on tour around Wrexham, Phil and his team have been working hard to raise awareness of the raffle.

Sarah Povey, Kate Wilson and Carolyn James at Nightingale House with the Kop barrier.

Barriers were removed as part of the dismantling of the Kop at the ground in preparation for its reconstruction to increase the Racecourse's capacity from 10,000 to 15,000.

AEC Engineering director Phil said: "I'm a big supporter of the hospice, and I thought it'd be a nice thing to do to raise money for the invaluable work that they do caring for patients with life-limiting illnesses.

"The Kop has great significance as part of Wrexham's history. With this being the last one, we thought it would be nice to raise as much money as we could to help the hospice and give a fan a chance that perhaps couldn't have afforded £300 to buy one and instead buy a £5 raffle ticket to be in the chance of winning the very last Kop barrier."

The last Kop barrier at The Turf, on tour in Wrexham.

The Kop barrier tour has included stops at the Arc Sculpture in Wrexham town centre, The Fat Boar, The Turf, and Nightingale House Hospice, where the lucky winner will be announced at noon on Friday, December 8.

Phil discussed people's reactions as they have seen the Kop Barrier around Wrexham. He said: "Lots of people have said, what's happening? Then we tell them it's for a raffle, and the proceeds are going towards Nightingale House Hospice, and then we give them the link. We've been sharing the link on our social media platforms, and it's had a really good response."

The last Kop barrier at St Giles' Parish Church, on tour in Wrexham.

Talking about why people should buy a ticket, Phil added: "This is the very last Kop barrier, there are no more. It's a piece of history from the oldest international stadium in the world still in use. If you are a Wrexham fan, or even if you're a Wales fan, to have something like that in your garden or your mancave or wherever you decide to put it, would be just unbelievable.

"I'd say, if you can, get a ticket for £5, help raise money for Nightingale House Hospice and be in the chance of winning this fantastic prize!"

The draw for the very last Kop barrier will be made at noon on Friday, December 8. Tickets, costing £5, can be bought at tinyurl.com/395ukexw.