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Community Rail News – photos of the fortnight

5 August 2026

As part of our Travelling with Confidence programme, grant-funded by the Motability Foundation, Heart of England CRP has produced a video giving an insight into the co-created learning activities the partnership has been delivering alongside participants from the Life Path Trust. These trips support adults with learning disabilities to plan trips by public transport safely, confidently and independently, aiming to break down the barriers faced by disabled people to rail travel.

The CRP is excited to receive a second round of funding through the programme, which will begin with a new day opportunities partner, iLEAP, in September 2026.

The volunteers comprising New Malden Residents’ Association have celebrated a special figure at their adopted station. On 5 July, Dewan Sehmi celebrated 50 years working on the railway, having begun his career as a porter at Hampton Court and working at various station across London, most recently in the ticket office at New Malden. The teams from New Malden Residents’ Association and Malden & Coombe Heritage Society recognised the day by presenting Dewan with a small gift and commemorative cards, and we were delighted to be joined by Dewan’s daughter, Sejal.

Sejal said: “I have seen my dad’s passion to give the best service to his customers by providing detailed information and guidance on their journey. His positive energy and friendly nature is so heart-warming to see, and the love and support he received from his longstanding customers after his heart attack was a real reflection of the impact he had in the local community.”

The Friends of Hartlepool Station were delighted to award a local Scouts group with their Platforms for Change badges at the end of June. MP for Hartlepool Jonathan Brash presented the young people with their awards, praising the work they had undertaken to improve the station environment and welcome passengers from all over the country through various gardening projects. The volunteers have developed an ongoing partnership with the Scouts group, engaging the youngsters with community rail activities at their station. Scouts group leaders also presented Colin Griffiths, chair, and Michael Anderson, secretary, with a special plaque, thanking them for providing their young people with the opportunity to be involved with the Friends’ vision for the station.

The Friends of Goostrey Station recently hosted a stall at Goostrey Rose Day, joined by a local student who has been volunteering alongside the team as part of his Duke of Edinburgh award. Together the group displayed photos and information about their latest projects, spoke with visitors and the community about the array of community rail activity that takes place at the station, and conducted a questionnaire to gather information on people’s travel behaviour and opinions of the station, as well as potential future improvements.

As part of Hymers College’s annual Year 12 community action day, Yorkshire Coast CRP supported 18 students to engage in community rail activity at Cottingham Station. The students worked with station adopters Working for Health CIC, who are based in one of the station buildings. After receiving a safety briefing, the young people set to work on various tasks around the station, including gardening, weeding and fence painting – all perfect preparation for the station’s imminent Yorkshire in Bloom competition judging.

Educational visits & community events coordinator at Hymers College, Emily Powell, said: “We would like to extend our sincere thanks to Working for Health for hosting us at Cottingham Station, and to the Yorkshire Coast CRP for organising this project with us. This is our fourth year of collaborating on station projects for our Hymers College community day, and we remain incredibly proud of this enduring partnership and its positive impact.”

Yorkshire Coast CRP officer, Rachel Osborne, said: “We love when our station adopters partner with local schools and colleges. The students now feel a real sense of pride in this station and that’s what community rail is all about.”