Children from Carlton Junior and Infant School in Dewsbury have created a community art project called Horizons, which was unveiled on Dewsbury Railway Station on Friday 12th July 2019. The project aims to get the Dewsbury community engaged with their local railway.
The Art club from the school worked alongside artist Candida Wood from Can Do Art and over 10 weeks they designed a piece of art aiming to attract members of the local community to visit the station and to use the railway.
The event was organised by Community Rail Lancashire, who have been working in collaboration with East of Lancashire Community Rail Partnership to develop links with local schools, colleges and community groups, with the aim to introduce young people to travel by rail and promote the use of the railway across the North Eastern area.
As part of this, Carlton Junior and Infant School have also held parent information workshops to encourage more families to use the railway for family daytrips, while they also hope that the mural will encourage visitors to get off the train at Dewsbury to see what the town has to offer.
Lucja Majewski, Regional Development Manager for TransPennine Express, said: “We are very pleased to showcase this artwork at Dewsbury station. Communities play a huge role in the railway and we hope that the Horizons project created by Carlton Junior and Infant School will not only brighten up our station but encourage more local families to use the railway.”
Karen Bennett, Education Development Officer for Community Rail Lancashire, said: “Community Rail Lancashire was thrilled to facilitate the Horizons project with a school which has huge ambitions for its pupils’ future. The art work will not only attract new visitors to the town, it will encourage the local community to use the railway more often and inspire a whole new generation to travel by rail and look at careers in the industry.”
Rizwana Mahmood, Headteacher at Carlton Junior and Infant School, commented: “Through this project, the children have gained a deeper understanding of life, travel and aspirations. Moving from one place to another for betterment and the role of rail transport in enabling this.”
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- Photograph courtesy Jack Brown
