New adopters offer boost for Manningtree rail station

Published on: Thursday, 11 March 2021
Last updated: Thursday, 11 March 2021

Manningtree station is to receive some extra TLC from local volunteers.

Kerry King and Martin Rayner have officially ‘adopted’ the station through Greater Anglia’s Station Adoption scheme and plan to help make the station more attractive and welcoming.

Kerry, the former Mayor of Manningtree, is already an active member of the community through her work as a celebrant and as a trustee of the local food bank and the Manifest Theatre.

Kerry will be supported by her husband, Martin, a retired project manager and keen community volunteer who is currently helping to restore Colchester’s Quaker Meeting House, who plans to bring his practical skills to the role.

Both have previously been a part of 'Floral Manningtree' a group dedicated to ensuring that the town looked its best.

Together they plan to maintain attractive floral displays at the station, brighten up the waiting rooms and create refuges for wildlife and birds.

Kerry said, "I always try and get involved in community activities and because we go everywhere by train it seemed appropriate to help Manningtree station look as good as possible."

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.

Alan Neville, Greater Anglia’s Customer and Community Engagement Manager, said, "I’m delighted to welcome Kerry and Martin to the Station Adoption initiative and look forward to hearing their ideas for brightening up the station and making it a welcoming environment ready for when the current pandemic restrictions can be lifted."

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.