Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR) says its £500,000 ‘Your Station, Your Community’ fund has been oversubscribed by more than £8 million in its first year.
Grant applications closed at the end of July with bids for more than 370 projects submitted by organisations from Norfolk to the South Coast. Bids were limited to between £1,000 and £50,000, with an average amount sought of £20,000. The most popular areas addressed were mental health and diversity and inclusion.
GTR will assess applications with passenger watchdog Transport Focus. Bids will be scored according to social value, stakeholder support, feasibility and demonstrable outcomes. Telephone discussions will take place for bids of more than £10,000.
Shortlisted schemes will be sent for approval to the Department for Transport before the end of the year with successful applicants notified in March 2023. It is expected most projects will start in the following month.
