With Barnet Football Club (the Bees) topping the Vanarama Conference and on course to return to the Football League, let’s step up the campaign to return the club to the borough.

The loss of the Bees to another borough – Harrow – is so much more than just the loss of a football club. It was part of Barnet’s history, heritage and identity – whether you liked football or not. Now it’s gone.

The Bees were founded in 1888 and played at Underhill Stadium for 106 years from 1907 to 2013, before relocating to The Hive Stadium in Canons Park, Edgware. The move was supposed to be a temporary one. Most fans who lived near to Underhill probably had a ten-minute walk or less to the ground. Now even after you’ve travelled to the nearest tube station to The Hive (Canons Park on the Jubilee Line) it’s around a ten-minute walk to the ground.

Perhaps not surprising some fans have simply stopped going. Attendances at The Hive ranged from 1,833 to 2,088 between January 1 and February 7, 2015. While relegation from the Football League has not helped matters, average Underhill attendances over 2012/2013 (League Two) were 2,440 – 20 per cent more.

But let’s not forget the Back2Barnet (B2B) campaign, which through the efforts of supporters under the Barnet Football Supporters Trust and various initiatives (e.g. fans stalls at festivals, sponsored walks, recording a campaign song) has kept hope alive that the club will land back in the borough in a new purpose-built stadium.

While B2B has gained support of Tory and Labour councillors, nobody it would appear wants to take the lead. It would be great if someone could kick this political football back into the game. As a member of the Green Party in Barnet, I certainly hope so. For those wanting further information on the Back2Barnet campaign please see www.back2barnet.co.uk

Roger Aitken

Jackson Road, East Barnet