Volunteers give Stamford station garden makeover

Customers using Stamford station will be able to enjoy all the colours of spring after a group of volunteers helped to revamp its garden.

Last year, construction company AmcoGiffen used the car park at the station as a compound whilst it carried out tunnel improvement works in the Stamford area on behalf of Network Rail. 

This work disrupted the gardening efforts of the Stamford station adoption group – who volunteer their time at the station to help improve its surroundings. 

Being aware of this issue, AmcoGiffen and Network Rail promised that they would come back in the spring to help the adopters begin the work of restoring the area.

The work has now been completed and includes many improvements which customers will appreciate as they use the station’s services.

The improvements include creating two new wooden planters, a compost bin and the installation of a wooden sleeper barrier around the garden to protect it from any vehicles.

The team of volunteers, which included station adopters, a team from AmcoGiffen and representatives from Network Rail and East Midlands Railway, also cleared weeds and rubbish. The busy team also spruced up the current gardens ready for spring by planting out many bulbs and flowers.

During the course of the day, Ronan McGee from AmcoGiffen also presented a gift voucher for £200 to the adopters.  The adopters will use this funding to buy shrubs to create a garden to celebrate the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee. 

Other plans for the area include a bug house and the installation of bird and bat boxes in the trees behind the garden to encourage wildlife.

Ronan McGee, Senior Site Agent at AmcoGiffen, said: “At AmcoGiffen we pride ourselves on being considerate neighbours. After carrying out lengthy tunnel strengthening work last year and using the area for our site compound, we promised to return in spring to make good. Working with the local adopters, EMR and Network Rail, we didn’t just return the site to its original state, we did more than that.

“Together, we created an amazing new garden area for the community to enjoy. We’re glad that we could show our appreciation to the local adopters and lineside neighbours in this way and we hope that everyone enjoys the new garden area for a long time.”

Stamford station adopter Rachel Roffe said: “Everyone's hard work has really transformed the station car park. What was a wasteland has become a pleasing environment for wildlife and people. This was thanks to the efforts of the contractors from EMR and Network Rail and the team of Stamford Station Adopters.

"A sincere thank you to AmcoGiffen for the £200 voucher and many thanks to everyone who took part in this project.”

Donna Adams, Community Engagement Manager at East Midlands Railway, said: "We would like to thank everyone who gave up their time to help improve the station. It was a lovely gesture by AmcoGiffen and I'm sure our customers will enjoy seeing how the garden develops as we move into summer."