Community Rail Week, sponsored by Rail Delivery Group, is an annual event showcasing the innovative projects and inspiring initiatives from across the community rail movement.
As a Community Rail Partnership, we are celebrating by looking back at some of the projects we have delivered with the aim of connecting communities by rail.
Art at Stations
The Art at Stations project was designed to connect young people to their railway, educating them on the dangers of trespassing on the railway and encouraging them to share rail safety messages through graffiti art. We enlisted the help of North Wales graffiti artist, Andy Birch to support the students to design their artwork.
The project also helped breakdown existing barriers and build relationships between the young people and British Transport Police (BTP), who were in attendance during the creative sessions to explain the importance of safety at stations.
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Art at Holyhead Railway Station by Ysgol Uwchradd Caergybi
Year 10 pupils designed and created five pieces of art, three of which were graffiti murals focusing on key messages around rail safety and safety in water as well as promoting mental health and tourism in Holyhead.
Twenty pupils were involved in this inspiring project, and each gained a qualification for their work as part of their Prince’s Trust Community Project module. The project was shortlisted for a Community Rail Award 2022 in the Involving Children and Young People category.
Art at North Llanrwst Railway Station by Ysgol Dyffryn Conwy
Year 10 and 11 pupils from Ysgol Dyffryn Conwy designed a piece of art based on rail safety. The artwork replaced an old and damaged piece in the shelter at North Llanrwst railway station. The frame to secure the artwork was kindly donated by College Llandrillo. The young people were given the opportunity to develop new skills whilst having fun and learning about rail safety.
Art at Conwy Railway Station by Ysgol Aberconwy
Students from Ysgol Aberconwy transformed the shelter at Conwy railway station into a piece of art highlighting a very important rail safety message. Anti-social behaviour including trespass became a worrying trend in the Conwy area and in an effort to help deter poor behaviour BTP, Andy Birch and the CRP engaged 22 students in producing an impressive mural with an important rail safety message.
In March 2023 the second shelter on the opposite side of the station was completed by Andy Birch and students from Ysgol Aberconwy.
