Avanti West Coast gets onboard with ‘Train Buddies’ to give young people access to the railway

• Avanti West Coast supports Cheshire charity to give young people opportunity to experience rail travel
• Project enables young carers and disabled children to enjoy days out on train
• Mural celebrating railway town will be created with local artist to display at Crewe station as part of the initiative

Disabled children and young carers supported by a Cheshire charity have been given the opportunity to experience the railways as part of a series of trips funded by Avanti West Coast.

The group from Central Cheshire Buddies Scheme - a charity that supports children and young people with disabilities, as well as sibling young carers - took the train to Blackpool for its ‘Train Buddies’ initiative. This trip marked the start of a programme that will run over the school holidays.

Designed to give young people experiences they would not normally have access to, Train Buddies will see three of the charity’s activity groups make 24 rail journeys for days out on the West Coast Main Line by the end of March 2025. 

With many of the young people having never been on a train in their life or even visited places outside of Crewe, the charity wanted to give them an opportunity to experience travelling on the railway.

Avanti West Coast has backed the initiative through its Customer and Communities Investment Fund which supports activities that address social needs local to its route.  

Train Buddies aims to teach the children how to navigate stations, what assistance is available during journeys, and how to board a train safely - all while exploring destinations including Liverpool, Chester, Manchester, Shrewsbury, and Blackpool.

The project will also see young people produce a piece of artwork celebrating Crewe that will go on permanent display at the station.

Cheshire Buddies have partnered with local recycling artist, Sue Guildford of Junk Art Creations to make a largescale mural using recycled and repurposed materials. Each week, groups will take part in workshops to create different elements for the finished piece.

To support the creation of the artwork, the charity is inviting donations of coloured plastic bottle tops and empty, clean yogurt pots from the local community. These can be dropped at Crewe station Ticket Office between 8am and 7pm from Thursday 1 to Friday 30 August.  

Joanna Buckley, Avanti West Coast Community Manager, said: “We’ve seen first-hand the great work Cheshire Buddies do for disabled children and young carers local to our route, so we’re pleased to be funding their latest project and connecting them to the railway, which is a key part of their hometown.

“Supporting initiatives that matter most to the people and places we serve is what our Customer and Communities Investment Fund is all about and we are delighted to be connecting young local people to opportunities they otherwise would not have access to. We look forward to welcoming them to our stations and onboard our trains for their days out and are sure they’ll have a great time experiencing the railway!”  

Stephanie Lawley of Cheshire Buddies said: “We’re delighted to work in partnership with Avanti West Coast and their team at Crewe station. This is a great opportunity for the children to travel on a train and to create a legacy piece of artwork at the station. The children are really looking forward to travelling on the trains and for many they would never normally get this opportunity.”  

For more information about the project, follow Cheshire Buddies on Facebook, X (formerly Twitter) or through the Cheshire Buddies website: www.cheshirebuddies.co.uk

ENDS