Volunteers across Scotland have been celebrated in the annual ScotRail in the Community Awards.
The ceremony took place on Friday, 1 November, at the voco Grand Central Hotel in Glasgow, with awards presented to hard-working volunteers across Scotland’s Railway, recognising their contribution to the wider local community and railway.
Categories included Adopted Station of the Year, Community Rail Partnership (CRP) Member of the Year, Adopter(s) of the Year, and Community Project of the Year. An award for the Outstanding Contribution to Community Rail was also presented.
The winners were:
- Adopted Station of the Year: Dumfries station.
- Dumfries Adoptive Railway Gardeners follow up last year’s success to win ‘Adopted Station of the Year’ for the second year running. The group look after and maintain two gardens at Dumfries, one either side of the railway line, with a wide range of plantings.
- Community Rail Partnership (CRP) Member of the Year: Diane Whateley.
- Diane collected the prize for her commitment to her local community, and the Community Rail Partnership. She is one of the founding members, and current Secretary, of the Rail 74 CRP, which covers six stations between Rutherglen and Hamilton Central. Diane has supported numerous community projects, educational workshops, and volunteer initiatives aimed at encouraging the use of public transport, and raising awareness of rail safety and climate action.
- Adopter(s) of the Year: Dumfries Adoptive Railway Gardeners (Dumfries station).
- The Dumfries Adoptive Railway Gardeners received praise from all across their local community for their exceptional work at Dumfries station, making it a welcoming environment for everyone who uses the station. The group of 10 volunteers work hard all year round to make the gardens as sustainable as possible – replacing annuals with perennials and encouraging wildlife to the gardens.
- Community Project of the Year: Newtongrange.
- Newtongrange station has been transformed over the past year thanks to the hard work of the Newtongrange Gorilla Gardeners. Large planters bursting with seasonal flowers now line the station platform and five areas around the car park have been carefully designed and planted to provide year-round colour. A wide variety of bee and butterfly friendly plants and flowers have seen an increase in fluttering visitors to the station.
- Outstanding Contribution to Community Rail: Sally Chambers.
- Since 2016, Sally has been the dedicated lead adopter at Burgh Beautiful Linlithgow, enhancing the station’s appearance and strengthening its connection with the community. Sally’s passion for her town is evident in her commitment to creating a warm and welcoming environment for both locals and visitors. Her contributions have been both thoughtful and impactful, and Sally’s dedication, positive spirit, and unwavering commitment make her a true asset to the community.
More than 1,100 people across the country volunteer on Scotland’s Railway, contributing to their local communities in a variety of different activities and projects – from community classes to station adopters.
More than 200 ScotRail stations across the country form part of the Adopt-a-Station programme. Community projects across Scotland’s rail network range from garden displays to charity bookshops, art galleries, and model railway clubs.
James Ledgerwood, ScotRail Head of Economic & Community Development, said:
“The ScotRail in the Community Awards is one of the highlights of our calendar each year.
“Supporting our local communities and their projects is incredibly important, and these awards allow us to celebrate our volunteers and the work they do to support ScotRail in delivering services that go way beyond the railway.
“I’d like to congratulate our winners and all the nominees, but also to thank every one of our volunteers for their continued contribution and effort to deliver benefits that stretch right through their local community.”
Image credit: ScotRail
