STATION Volunteers Win National Award

Wednesday, 29 September 2010 |

THE Friends of Wemyss Bay Station have been named the Best Station Adopter Group at the prestigious Community Rail Awards.

And the Friends’ Sheena Inglis was runner-up in the category for Outstanding Volunteer Contribution at the ceremony in Westcliff-on-Sea.

The group maintains floral displays and runs a bookshop and gallery at the station under the umbrella of ScotRail’s Adopt a Station scheme which aims to put stations at the heart of their communities.

The Friends were delighted with their successes. Nancy Cameron, chairman, said: “We have come a long way since formed in the spring of 2009.

“Indeed, when Passenger Focus later declared Wemyss Bay the best adopted station in Scotland, little did we imagine that the Friends would receive this national recognition. It will inspire us to continue our work with ScotRail on restoring the spirit of the station’s Edwardian magnificence."

Sheena Inglis, the bookshop manageress, added: "I have always wanted to run a bookshop. And raising funds in support of the efforts by ScotRail and Network Rail to revive Wemyss Bay Station is a great cause.”

John Yellowlees, ScotRail’s external relations manager, said: “The volunteers’ success in this year’s Community Rail Awards at three Scottish stations -- Wemyss Bay, Cupar and North Berwick -- is a tribute to the strong sense of community that we have encountered across Scotland."