Avanti West Coast invests in its communities with launch of £2.2m fund

• New Customer & Communities Investment Scheme is part of train operator’s focus on local communities
• Funding pot of £2.2m is first of three phases to bring community projects to life and deliver improvements across West Coast Main Line
• Customers and community groups are encouraged to apply with ideas to improve overall journey experience and make a difference to local communities

Avanti West Coast has launched a new £2.2m fund to encourage ideas to improve stations and local communities along its route.

The Customer and Communities Investment Scheme (CCIS) is open for applications from projects which address regeneration challenges and tackle social needs across the regions served by Avanti West Coast. The money will be awarded to the successful bidders by Avanti West Coast over a two-year period.

This latest investment by the inter-city operator is part of its focus on helping others with community and charitable initiatives along its west coast route. It is the first of three phases of the CCIS, which spans five years and is set to provide a total of £5.5m in funding.  

Customers, stakeholders, and community groups are encouraged to submit proposals for initiatives which can create a difference to communities local to the West Coast Main Line – running between London, Scotland and North Wales.

Propositions could be anything from better integrated journeys to and from stations using sustainable transport modes, to connecting young people with opportunities (education, jobs, skills).

Applications for a share of the funding pot should consider the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals – a blueprint to achieve a better and more sustainable future for all. This blueprint helped shape Avanti West Coast’s thinking behind the CCIS, by addressing areas such as poverty, inequality, and climate change.  

Richard Scott, Partnerships & Strategy Director at West Coast Partnership, said: “Our Customer and Communities Investment Scheme is the latest example of how we’re working in partnership to deliver improvements for people right across our route.

“At Avanti West Coast we connect people and places to opportunity and this scheme will help to make positive local changes to the communities we serve. The initiative is more relevant than ever, as the impact of the coronavirus pandemic means people along our route are facing new challenges on top of existing environmental and social issues.   

“We would love to receive ideas from as many customers, stakeholders and community groups as possible, so we can support initiatives that matter to them and make a difference to our stations or services, as well as to the regions we serve.”

To find out more and apply for a share of the CCIS, visit: https://www.avantiwestcoast.co.uk/where-we-go/community-hub

The closing date for applications for the first phase of funding is 23:59 on 15 November 2020.

ENDS