Station friends groups at Glossop, Hadfield and Guide Bridge have hosted their annual Teddy Bears’ Picnic for local families.

With the support of Northern, free train travel was offered to all families taking part in the event on Saturday 20 June, many of whom were first-time visitors to the stations and even rail travel.

Each station hosted a popular ‘find the teddy bear’ competition, this year with a World Cup Theme, and each station group took the opportunity to showcase their station’s facilities and volunteer activity to the new passengers.

Those joining at Glossop were treated to delicious refreshments thanks to generous donations from TWIG, the café within Glossop Station, and welcomed by an impressive collection of teddies by Jacqueline Horne, who has been at the helm of every teddy bears’ picnic event at Glossop since its inception.

A big hit this year was the new Signal Garden at Guide Bridge Station. Framed by a working semaphore signal gantry, volunteers have created an attractive garden from a derelict area between two disused platforms. The garden now has a wide range of plants as well as a model steam engine and signal box – and proved to be an ideal location for the teddy bears’ picnic.

Neil Williams of the Friends of Glossop Station said: “Over 100 people travelled between the stations for over three hours on the day. Drivers and conductors joined in the fun too, with lots of waving and teddy bear announcements on trains. We really appreciated their support and enthusiasm!

“The station groups are hugely grateful for the ongoing support they receive from Northern, and would like to thank Becky Styles and Sarah Morgan, community and sustainability managers, for their practical assistance, as well as area manager Theo MacLauchlan.”

Keep up to date with future news, projects and events from the Friends of Glossop Station via their website.