SECURING automatic promotion to League One saved Wrexham the torment of trying to go up through the play-offs but also means Phil Parkinson can make a head start on his recruitment plans.

The Reds were guaranteed a top-three finish in League Two with two games to spare and ended another memorable season by beating champions Stockport County 2-1 at The Racecourse on Saturday which was the fifth win in a row and meant Parkinson's men clinched runners-up spot.

After winning back-to-back promotions for the first time in the club's history, Parkinson is targeting new signings for Wrexham's return to the third tier where they last played in 2004-05 under Denis Smith.

"It gives us a head-start in terms of the recruitment and that is key," he said.

"It is time to reflect and look at the squad as a whole, and the areas we need to improve.

"We have got a very good core of players. We worked hard to build a squad which is coming on a journey with us, we felt we had to improve and we will do that again.

"Obviously we need to improve the squad. As you go up a division, everything improves; athleticism, quality, preparation, everything.

"There's a lot of hard work to be done over the summer but we will sit down, take our time and make the right decisions to give us a chance to be competitive next season."

A number of players are out of contract this summer including goalkeepers Mark Howard and Rob Lainton, defenders Callum McFadzean, Ben Tozer, Aaron Hayden and Jordan Tunnicliffe, utility man James McClean, captain and midfielder Luke Young - the longest serving player in the squad - and striker Steven Fletcher.

As well as making new additions, Parkinson says it is inevitable players move on as Wrexham prepare for life at a higher level.

"There is the possibility of players moving on and that is the hard part of any manager's job but we also know we have got to evolve as a club and we will try and do that," he added.

"Decisions have got to be made and we will do them fairly and honestly."