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Community Rail News – 21 January 2026

Hello everyone. We hope, as always, that this bulletin finds you well.

We’re pleased to announce Community Rail Week will return Monday 1 to Sunday 7 June 2026, supported once again by Rail Delivery Group. Each year our flagship campaign becomes bigger and better, and we can’t wait to join members in showcasing more of your inspiring work. This year’s theme and supporting materials will be published in the coming weeks. We encourage early engagement with our comms team, including to support engagement with local leaders.

Following our recent webinar on devolution, we recognise the growing importance to members of strengthening relationships with devolved and sub‑national authorities. To support this, we want to highlight this guidance by Urban Transport Group, offering practical insights on engaging with combined authorities, transport executives and elected mayors.

Last week also saw several significant announcements on the development of the rail network. This included a new rail line between Liverpool and Manchester, as part of the Northern Powerhouse Rail programme, alongside a wider phased programme of electrification and upgrades across Yorkshire and the North East, and the reopening of the Leamside Line. There is also the longer-term intention to build a new line between Birmingham-Manchester in place of the cancelled HS2.

These plans are central to the Government’s commitments to improve regional connectivity, boost economic potential and support regeneration across northern cities and corridors. They can be found in its new policy paper Northern Growth Strategy: Case for change. We have put together a summary of the key elements of Northern Powerhouse Rail and other rail projects – which you can read here – and will continue to monitor developments to ensure community rail perspectives are considered within this and other emerging regional transport plans.

Best wishes,
Jeremy and Jools

Gender-based barriers to travel – online session

Join our online session tomorrow (Thursday 22 January), 10-11am, where officers from Heart of England CRP, Southeast Communities Rail Partnership and Oxfordshire CRP will be sharing insights from their initiatives for White Ribbon Day and addressing gender-based travel barriers. Session details can be found here.

Funding

Members can still apply for funding from the two grant pots we administer on behalf of the Department for Transport. Accredited CRP members in England and Wales can apply for the Community Rail Development Fund, and our Small Grants Fund for England is still open for applications from our station adoption/small groups, community station and non-accredited CRP members. The small grants funds we administer on behalf of Transport for Greater Manchester and South Western Railway are also still open. Find all funding information here and contact us with any questions.

Accessible Adventures – upcoming tourism and leisure campaign

Our latest tourism and leisure campaign, Accessible Adventures, will run from 9–22 February, shining a spotlight on how community rail supports inclusive, accessible days out by rail. Members are encouraged to get involved by sharing existing initiatives with our comms team. Download the digital toolkit or speak to Alice about how to get involved.

Awards sponsorship opportunities

While we’re very much looking forward to the 2026 Community Rail Awards on 19 March in Derby, we’re also already looking ahead and seeking support for our 2027 event. Our headline partners and other sponsors are crucial to delivering a wonderful celebration of the activities and people that make up the community rail movement. Check out the sponsorship pack here and contact Tiff to discuss.

Send your stories to our Comms team and see our guidance on submitting stories.

Your next bulletin is on 4 February. Keep up-to-date in between on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, TikTok, Bluesky and X.

The Department for Transport and Welsh Government’s accreditation scheme for CRPs is formal recognition that our members operate to a high standard, and that their objectives and activities are supported by Government. It provides assurance that their governance and financial propriety are sound; that they adopt a collaborative local community approach; are worthy of trust by others; and are a suitable entity for receiving public funds.

In the period October to December 2025, the following CRPs had their accreditation renewed: TransWilts CRP, High Peak & Hope Valley CRP, South East Lancashire CRP, Community Rail Lancashire, Leeds-Morecombe CRP, Barton Cleethorpes CRP, Oxfordshire CRP, Hereward CRP, Severnside CRP and North Staffordshire CRP.

Congratulations all! The full list of accredited CRPs can be found here.
Yorkshire Coast CRP hosted its annual Brew Monday coffee morning at Bridlington Station on Monday 19 January. Ten CRP volunteers – with representatives from Network Rail and station adoption groups along the line – helped serve refreshments and chatted to passengers, as well as handing out rail safety leaflets and other information about local support services. Live music was provided by talented local acoustic duo Three Rabbits in a Raincoat, and donations were taken, raising over £30 for MIND, who are based in the Old Parcels Office at Bridlington Station.

Rachel Osborne, Yorkshire Coast CRP officer, said: “Brew Monday is a great opportunity for us to connect with people, bringing a bit of cheer to passengers at stations and helping to banish the January blues.”
The Friends of Glossop Station have collaborated with Glossop Bookfest for the latest instalment of their ‘Poetry on the Platform’ display. Glossop Bookfest ran a creative writing competition with local junior schools, inspired by the national Railway 200 celebrations. The volunteers were delighted to receive over 200 entries on the theme of ‘Trains and Travellers’ – so many, in fact, that the pieces will be split over two displays, to properly showcase the local young people’s creativity. The first is currently on display at Glossop Station, and the second will be in situ in the middle of February. Displays of the poems will also extend to Hadfield and Dinting stations over the coming weeks – keep your eyes peeled if you’re travelling through!