Over the August 2023 Bank Holiday weekend, the Friends of Bishopstone Station hosted a special community event with the aim of celebrating the geographical and social history of Bishopstone Station and the Lewes to Seaford railway line.

Positive connections were built with local authorities, with the District Council Tourist Information Centre handling advance ticket sales for the first time and the Mayor of Newhaven opening the weekend with a heart-warming welcoming speech. Extensive advance publicity to raise awareness of the event included social media, local radio and websites, various electronic newsletters, two local museums and three door-to-door magazines.

Over 120 people attended events across the weekend, including talks from local historians and tours of the station led by volunteers. All events included refreshment and allowed visitors to meet other residents, socialise and learn about the role of the Friends of Bishopstone Station volunteers in restoring the Grade II art deco station into an award-winning community hub.

The £108 the group spent on refreshments, posters and commission on ticket sales returned a net profit of over £500, which will be put towards the restoration of the toilets at the station. Thanks to the event, a number of residents who had never been to the station before came and visited for the first time, and the Friends’ group received more expressions of interest from potential future volunteers, showing the appetite for local people to get involved in a thriving community space with a rich history and an exciting future.

Youth Inspired is a community organisation enabling people with learning difficulties, disabilities, autism or mental health conditions to learn, grow and achieve through training and support, including art and design. The organisation was commissioned by Marston Vale CRP to create an outdoor mosaic artwork for Bedford St Johns Station, to brighten up a relatively unknown and tucked-away station on the line.

Sourcing the materials themselves for just £160, Youth Inspired worked with the group to explore the Marston Vale Line. This enabled participants to not only photograph and research the local area to inform their creations, but to also have the opportunity to access rail travel and boost their confidence to travel independently.

After the unveiling of the finished pieces, Youth Inspired received an overwhelmingly positive response from the community, and an increased interest in their organisation’s work. They have even been commissioned to create artwork for nine more stations along the line, providing further opportunities for the local SEN community to connect with local stations and rail travel, as well as showcase their creative talents.

To celebrate Worksop Station turning 175 years old in 2024, the Friends of Worksop Station produced a storyboard to create a visually appealing and informative display showcasing the station's history, notable passengers and the surrounding area.

The storyboard project involved a comprehensive process of research, design and installation. Photographs came from two private archives – one belonged to a member of the Friends group, and the second came from a local amateur historian, who kindly gave his resources free of charge.

The board was unveiled by the local MP, with the Mayor of the East Midlands also in attendance, which led to a host of positive social media and media attention, including local newspaper coverage in the Worksop Guardian.

The project has also led to collaborations with other organisations, such as a local church group, who invited the Friends of Worksop Station to give a talk about the station's history and its impact on the surrounding area. For the very reasonable cost of £92, the volunteers delivered a project that not only commemorated an important milestone in local railway heritage but also generated an increased interest in local history and enhanced the visitor experience at Worksop Station.