Community Rail Week 2025 (CRW25) got off to a flying start across the Community Rail Lancashire (CRL) area with a number of events on Monday & Tuesday.
Monday 19 May – Open Day at Accrington Station
Community Rail Week got off to a fantastic start with a day of interactive workshops at the ‘bunker’ at Accrington Eco Station, welcoming 80 local schoolchildren to take part in engaging, hands-on activities celebrating sustainability, rail heritage, and future careers.
In the morning session, 60 pupils from Woodnook Primary School and Peel Park Primary School took part in a series of workshops. In the afternoon, 20 secondary students from St Christopher’s CE High School and The Hollins joined the programme.
Young participants took part in three key activities:
+ Eco Gardening: Children got their hands dirty making seed bombs in the Eco Garden with Sonja from The Prospects Foundation, learning about biodiversity and pollinator-friendly planting.
+ Creative Rail200 Artwork: Local artist Diane Muldowney led pupils in producing unique linocut and cyanotype prints inspired by 200 years of railway heritage, as part of the national #Rail200 celebrations.
+ Railway Careers Exploration: Pupils explored a range of roles within the rail industry, had talks from Northern staff, tried on uniforms, and enjoyed a surprise visit from Whistle the Dog, Northern’s friendly mascot.
The event highlighted the value of bringing young people together through community rail to explore environmental sustainability, creativity, and the opportunities offered by the railway sector.
A huge thank you goes out to all partners and volunteers who supported the day, making it a memorable and meaningful start to Community Rail Week.
Monday 19 May – LNER Launch new service from Bradford Forster Square to London
Team members from CRL helped LNER with their official launch of the new service from Bradford to London. The ‘Bantam of the Opera’ choir sang on the train as far as Doncaster and then In addition, a new project was launched to commemorate Bradford 2025 city of culture and Railway 200. Seat-y of culture will see young people across the Bradford district design a new moquette for a LNER 225 carriage.
Tuesday 20 May – World Bee Day
Buzzing with Excitement: Pupils Celebrate World Bee Day at Accrington Eco Station
Pupils from St John Stonefold Primary School in Baxenden were buzzing with excitement during a special visit to Accrington Eco Station to celebrate World Bee Day.
The event, held as part of Community Rail Week 2025, gave pupils the opportunity to learn all about the vital role bees play in our ecosystem through a series of hands-on workshops and activities. Hosted at the bunker – the day began with a guided tour of the Eco Station and a rail safety talk, before the focus turned to the stars of the show: the bees.
The workshops were led by members of the East Lancashire Beekeepers Association, who brought along fascinating resources including an observation hive where children could search for the queen bee. Other activities included:
+ Beeswax candle making
+ Honey tasting
+ Creating wildflower seed bombs
+ Playing bee-themed educational games
The sessions helped pupils understand the importance of pollinators, the challenges they face, and how simple actions can make a big difference to the environment.
