He progressed through the youth team and he signed a two-year professional contract with Derby on 19 July 2006. He joined Conference National club Cambridge United on a one-month loan on 19 October 2006 and he made his debut in a 3–0 defeat to Oxford United. He finished the loan with two appearances. He had a trial with Conference National club York City in January 2007, playing in a reserve-team match against Rotherham United. He joined League One team Chesterfield on a one-month loan on 19 February 2007, making one appearance as a left midfielder in a 2–0 defeat to Tranmere Rovers on 2 March. Following the expiry of the loan, Chesterfield opted against extending it. Meredith joined League of Ireland Premier Division club Sligo Rovers on a contract until the end of the 2007 season on 31 July 2007. He made his debut in a 2–0 defeat at Galway United on 24 August 2007 and he finished his time at the club with four appearances. Meredith signed for League Two team Shrewsbury Town on 14 January 2008 on a one-and-a-half-year contract after training with the club, which included a clause that after making five appearances the contract could be renegotiated. He made his debut on 23 February 2008 in the 2–1 home defeat to Hereford United, finishing the 2007–08 season with three appearances, with his final match coming against Rochdale on the last day of the season. He was told that he did not figure in new manager Paul Simpson's immediate plans in July 2008, being left behind as the club travelled to Spain on a pre-season training camp. Meredith joined Conference North club A.F.C. Telford United on 16 October 2008 on a one-month loan, saying "I don't see it as a step down but as a step up, because I've become stagnant at Shrewsbury". Meredith signed a further one-month extension with Telford in November 2008 and he scored the only goal in a 1–0 victory over Gateshead. The loan was again extended for a further month in December 2008, keeping him at the club until early January 2009. Telford were looking to extend his loan for the remainder of 2008–09, but a contractual hitch held this up. He eventually extended the loan on 8 January. Meredith played for Telford in both legs of the semi-final defeat to York City in the FA Trophy. He was handed a red card against Barrow in the semi-final of the Conference League Cup in March, which meant he would miss the Final because of a two-match suspension.