Rotherham United's summer recruitment and spending ... Tony Stewart outlines his plan for another season in the Championship

CHAIRMAN Tony Stewart is ready to take his recruitment spending to an unprecedented level this summer to ensure Rotherham United build on their long-awaited Championship survival.

The Millers have stayed up for the first time in four attempts since 2017, finishing in 19th spot, six points above the drop zone.

The club’s owner is prepared to dig deep — as he did in the January transfer window — to give boss Matt Taylor a squad capable of gaining a long-term foothold in the division.

“Yes, we’re going to invest more money,” Stewart told the Advertiser. “That’s a fact. We’re going to get a quality of player we probably haven’t had before.

“I will do whatever the manager wants to do. We need to show people in Rotherham that we’re a serious club who want to climb to new heights.

“January taught me something: that we need Championship-proven players if we are to say: ‘This is where we’re going to park ourselves for two or three years.’

“The first thing this season was to retain our status, which we have done. We can now be a bit more ambitious.”

The arrival of seven new faces, including striker Jordan Hugill on a substantial three-and-a-year deal, at the turn of the year played a big part in Rotherham’s successful safety mission.

The Millers owner has been impressed by how well Taylor and head of recruitment Rob Scott have worked together since the manager’s October appointment and has full trust in them identifying the right signings.

He said: “Matt and Rob know where the gaps are, know what we require. We’re taking things very seriously.

“We know how hard it is to stay in this division. We’ve gone through that pain barrier. We’ve come out of it and now recruitment has to play a major part.

“We have to have a team capable not just of staying in this league but of competing in this league and making sure we’re in a healthy position at the end of next season.”

The club are also making a major financial outlay in improving facilities at their Roundwood training base.