Archive: this report was published ahead of the 2021 Community Rail Awards.
The Friends of Buxton Station (FoBS) announced that they had been shortlisted for five 2021 Community Rail Awards.
In June 2021, the group received the Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service. Two Derbyshire groups received the award that year: Friends of Buxton Station and the Cromford Canal and Codnor Park Reservoir Group.
The original announcement described the following five shortlisted categories and projects:
- Involving Young People – working with pupils at Buxton Junior School to plant wildflowers to provide food for hungry bumblebees
- Station and community arts – for the group’s legacy artwork projects linked to their work to help bumblebees including a large fibreglass sculpture, Billie the Buxton bee and an intricate mosaic of Lightwood, home to our rarest bees
- Photographic competition – two images showing different projects attracted attention
- Heart of the community – the group have been recognised for their work outside the station environment, particularly their role in the alternative wells dressing during the cancelled carnival in 2020
- Outstanding volunteer – FoBS Chairman, Dave identified as a prime mover.
The group’s earlier awards included first place for lighting the fanlight in 2016, the 2018 Most Enhanced Station Buildings and Surroundings award for a defibrillator in a restored phone box, and Lead Platinum in It’s Your Station in 2020.
David Carlisle, Chairman of FoBS explained: “Of course I’m honoured to be considered an outstanding volunteer, but more importantly the whole group are pleased to be short-listed once again. We are immensely proud of our station and our voluntary work in the community, being particularly delighted that our various projects in support of Buxton’s endangered Bilberry bumblebees have been recognised.”
Dave added, “For the fifth consecutive year, we have entered the rarefied atmosphere of being shortlisted in at least three different categories. We must be doing something right. It is recognition not just for us, but for those who work with or support us – including D. B. Cargo (UK) Limited, Northern Trains Limited, High Peak Borough Council, Network Rail and the High Peak & Hope Valley Community Rail Partnership.”
At the 9 December 2021 awards, the group jointly won Outstanding Contribution to Community Rail with Southeast Communities Rail Partnership and won Station Friends and Adopters at the Heart of Communities. Dave Carlisle won Outstanding Volunteer Contribution, and the group took second place for community arts. Read Northern’s report.
Who are Friends of Buxton Station?
FoBS is an unfunded community group of volunteers working to cheer up and generally brighten up Buxton Station. Their focus shifted in 2020 towards wider community working, including helping scarce and declining bumblebees and local independent traders struggling to recover from covid-19 closures.
What are The National Community Rail Awards?
The National Community Rail Awards recognise the important, but often unsung work carried out by community rail partnerships and station adoption groups like FoBS, who provide a welcome social and economic contribution, with their activities, to their communities.
To find out more and to follow their progress, join their Facebook group at facebook.com/fobs
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