Twenty One Stories
of enterprise, inspiration
and community endeavour
Local people partnering with the railway industry bringing community ingenuity to develop projects that are not-for-profit, to enrich localities and enhance the railways.
Following an intense vetting and selection process in 2019 by community individuals and organisations, 21 schemes were selected to go forward for the first year of delivery and the array of funded projects include community hub creation, heritage ventures, science & technology ventures, arts, gardening, festivals, urban revival, music maps, rambles and all sorts in between.
The investments are released to the schemes based on ‘Third Party Led Project’ contracts and will create ventures across our networks that will strengthen community and social regeneration and involve the railways in local communities.
West Midlands Railway launched the Customer and Communities Improvement Fund to support projects across the region to connect communities, deliver social regeneration and create tangible benefits at stations to support local people.
“There is a an important ‘people’ bonding element to these projects. People work together, meet, have a laugh and conversation. So whilst the delivery of the works can be hard work, challenging and frustrating, good does prosper!”
Community Project Manager
The Customer & Communities
Improvement Fund
Serves local communities
Delivered by local people
Has a clear Community focus
Completed in one year
Addresses areas of social need
Creates economic and social regeneration impact
To qualify, projects must not be for commercial gain, costs must be in proportion with the social and regeneration outcomes expected and projects must have a clear community focus with passenger considerations as well as being physically based close to our stations so that the stations will function as ‘community hubs’.
Your Community, Your Fund
2020-21
£307K
External Funding Input
100
Community Leaders involved
40
WMR Stations Adopted, Enhanced & Improved
12,000
Volunteer Hours Invested
18
Specially composed poems for stations
20
Station Planters Installed on Platforms
20
Wellbeing Pop-ups
2
Trails from Stations/Rail & Ale and Poetry
1
Refurbished Vintage Rail Carriage
1
Secret Garden at the Station
1
‘Walking with Giants’ Trail from the Station
1
New Footpath
50
Railway Themed Library Books
6
Community Rooms
1
Festival of Innovation
1
Brass Band Gazebo
10
Music Maps for Stations
35
Zoom Project Meetings
...and 000’s of local people will benefit from these community schemes
The Customer and Communities Improvement Fund (CCIF) is a fund to support visionary schemes that bring lasting benefit to the community, encourage the use of rail and create social and economic regeneration.