Published on: Monday, 22 February 2021
Last updated: Monday, 22 February 2021
North Fambridge station is to receive some extra TLC from a local volunteer.
Gill Britten has officially ‘adopted’ the station through Greater Anglia’s Station Adoption scheme and plans to spend time tidying, tending to vegetation and planting flowers to make the station more attractive and welcoming.
Gill, 64, from Heybridge, became interested in volunteering locally after retirement left her with spare time on her hands.
She commented, "I hope to make the station a pleasant place to want to travel to and from - a few bright flowers can lift the spirits, essential during these difficult times!
"There are also houses directly opposite the station so any work to improve the appearance of the station would be beneficial to those residents and the local community as a whole, and I hope to help the local wildlife by planting some wildflowers and installing some bird boxes."
Alan Neville, Greater Anglia’s Customer and Community Engagement Manager, said, "I’m delighted to welcome Gill to the Station Adoption initiative and look forward to hearing her ideas for brightening up the station and making it a welcoming environment ready for when the current pandemic restrictions can be lifted."
Greater Anglia’s Station Adoption scheme sees people getting involved with their local rail station for the benefit of their communities, working with Greater Anglia to bring about improvements or caring for gardens and floral displays to benefit local wildlife and make stations more welcoming.
Current Government advice is to stay at home unless you need to travel for permitted reasons including work and medical appointments.
Greater Anglia continues to ensure that rail travel is safe for staff and passengers with an enhanced cleaning regime, on stations and trains, concentrating on high-touch areas such as push buttons, grab rails and door handles.
The train operator has also introduced a wide range of measures to make it easier for customers to maintain social distancing at stations and on trains - including floor markings, one-way systems, new signs and queuing systems.
It is now mandatory for customers to wear a face covering when using public transport, to help reduce the spread of Covid-19. Children under the age of 11 and people with a disability or illness which means they cannot wear a face covering are exempt from wearing them.