CAMAPIGNERS are urging supporters to display 'It has to be Teesside' posters in their windows as an online poll shows overwhelming support for the idea.

TeessideTogether was launched to reclaim the area's identity and abolish the term Tees Valley and is urging people to start using the name in their address.

An online poll on the organisation's website has shown that 92 per cent of people are in favour of the Teesside campaign leaving just eight per cent in support of Tees Valley - from 2,500 votes.

Now the group has uploaded two posters onto the website to encourage people to print them out and show their support.

TeessideTogether chairman Dave Roberts said: “We’ve been delighted by the response we have received since launching a fortnight ago. The message from local people could not be clearer - we want our identity back and it has to be Teesside.

“That message has been underlined once again by our own poll showing 92 per cent favouring Teesside as the right identity rather than just eight per cent for Tees Valley and that is after almost 20 years of trying to foist Tees Valley on local people.

“There could not a more important time for ending the uncertainty which has bedevilled the area for so long with huge opportunities opening up through the move to greater devolution of powers and resources. We understand that Tees Valley may have been seen as a useful ‘label’ by administrators local and national but there are no signs that either in the area or elsewhere it has any real recognition.

“Local people should be heard and that is what we are seeking to achieve through TeessideTogether. That is why we have produced the ‘It has to be Teesside’ posters which people can download and display wherever they want…for example in their homes or in their cars.

“There is another simple but effective action everyone can take and that is to ensure that they use Teesside in their address."

To download the posters or to vote in the poll visit teessidetogether.com