Thousands of pounds have been made available to help volunteers transform railway stations in Suffolk and Essex into “attractive gateways” for visitors.

Abellio Greater Anglia has announced a £15,000 fund to help its team of volunteers who help care for the stations across its network buy new plants, flowers and tools for gardens as well as individual projects such as art installations.

The Adopt a Station Scheme was started in 2003 to enable individuals or group to take on their local station and improve it for the benefit of rail users and the wider community.

There are now more than 180 adopters at around 90 sites across Suffolk, Essex, and the wider region, who have helped to enhance their stations with gardening schemes and community art projects, while offering valuable feedback to Greater Anglia.

Andrew Goodrum, the company’s customer service director, said the scheme had gone from “strength to strength”, benefitting many stations with “additional care and attention”.

“I am grateful to all our station adopters for their contribution and support in helping to put stations at the centre of their local communities and am pleased to announce this additional funding package to help them continue to do great things, making our stations even more attractive gateways to the communities they serve,” he added.

For more information on Abellio, visit www.abellio.com.