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Adopt a station

We have a scheme called Adopt A Station that finds community or start-up uses for vacant accommodation at our stations.

It’s been a great success, and so far our successful 'adopters' include Pitlochry Station Bookshop; the Clyde Model Railway Club at Lanark; rse@arbroath and Arbroath Abbey Timethemes; a community meeting room at Maxwell Park (Pollokshields Heritage); the Friends of Wemyss Bay Station (bookshop and gallery); the Stranraer to Ayr Line Support Association's shop at Girvan and the East Ayrshire Toy Library at Kilmarnock.

Unfortunately we don’t have funds to support making any spaces habitable – our contribution is to offer the accommodation rent free. Adopters are liable to pay any applicable local authority rates, heat and light. To find out more, you can download and print out the form below. Once completed, please return it to John Yellowlees, ScotRail External Relations Manager at john.yellowlees@firstgroup.com or by post to:

John Yellowlees
First ScotRail
Atrium Court
50 Waterloo Street
Glasgow
G2 6HQ
(T 0141-335 4787 or F:0141-335 4791).

Download your application form here.

 

Gardening on stations

More than one hundred stations have so far been adopted by volunteer gardeners – who have helped us to add seasonal colour and vibrancy.

Thanks to all concerned at the following locations, including the following organisations:

Aberdeen with Aberdeen in Bloom
Airdrie
Alloa with Alloa Rotary Club
Alness with Alness in Bloom
Annan
Arbroath with Angus College
Ardgay with the Community Council
Ardlui
Ardrossan South Beach
Ardrossan Town with the South West Scotland Railway Adopters' Group
Arisaig with HITRANS
Arrochar & Tarbet with the Arrochar Community Council
Auchinleck with Auchinleck Community Council
Ayr with the South West Scotland Railway Adopters' Group 
Banavie with Caol in Bloom
Barassie
Barrhead with Barrhead High School
Barrhill with the South West Scotland Railway Adopters' Group
Bathgate with Enterprising Bathgate
Bearsden
Bishopton with Bishopton Community Council
Blair Atholl with the Community Council
Bridge of Allan with the Friends of Bridge of Allan
Bridge of Orchy with the West Highland Way Sleeper
Broughty Ferry with Broughty Ferry Community Council and Rotary Club
Burnside with Burnside in Bloom
Cardonald with In-Work Ltd.
Cardross
Carluke with the Carluke Business Development Trust
Carnoustie with the Carnoustie Community Council
Carrbridge with the Friends of Carrbridge Station
Corpach with Corpach in Colour
Carstairs with Carstairs Junction Community Association
Cartsdyke with In Work Ltd.
Clarkston with the Busby & Clarkston Gardening Club
Cowdenbeath with the Rotary Club
Crianlarich with the Station Tearoom
Crookston with Friends of Rosshall Park and Gardens
Crosshill with South Seeds
Croy with Kelvin Valley Honey
Cumbernauld with Carbrain & Hillcrest Community Council
Cupar with Cupar in Bloom
Dalgety Bay with the Inverkeithing & Dalgety Bay Rotary Club
Dalmally
Dalmeny
Dalry with the South West Scotland Railway Adopters' Group 
Dalwhinnie with the Dalwhinnie Community Council
Dingwall with the Station Cafe
Drem
Dumbarton Central with The Coffee Station
Dumfries with the South West Scotland Railway Adopters' Group
Dunblane with the Dunblane Development Trust
Dundee with the six Dundee Rotary Clubs
Dunkeld & Birnam with the Scottish Wildlife Trust
Dunlop with Dunlop Community Council
Duke Street with Golfhill Primary
Dyce with Dyce in Bloom
East Kilbride with South Lanarkshire College
Easterhouse with Swinton Primary School
Elgin with the Rotary Club of Elgin
Exhibition Centre with Charing Cross Rotary
Falkirk Grahamston with the Falkirk Rotary Club
Falkirk High with the Falkirk Rotary Club
Falls of Cruachan
Forres with Forres in Bloom
Fort Matilda with In Work Ltd.
Garelochhead
Garrowhill with the Garrowhill Community Council
Giffnock
Girvan with the South West Scotland Railway Adopters' Group
Gleneagles with the Gleneagles Hotel
Glenfinnan with the Glenfinnan Station Museum
Glengarnock with In-Work Ltd.
Glenrothes with Thornton, with Thornton Green Fingers
Golspie with HITRANS
Gourock with In Work Ltd.
Greenock Central with In Work Ltd.
Greenock West with Bica Catering
Gretna Green with the Gretna Green Community Council
Hairmyres with Crosshouse Primary School
Hamilton Central with Hamilton Grammar School
Hamilton West with Beckford Lodge
Hillington East with In-Work Ltd.
Hillington West with In-Work Ltd.
Helensburgh Central with the Helensburgh and Gareloch Horticultural Society
Helensburgh Upper with the Friends of the West Highland Lines
Howwood with Howwood Wildlife and Woodlands
Huntly with Huntly Development Trust
Keith with Fife Keith Action Group
Kilwinning with Hazeldene Resource Centre
Insch with The Insch Museum
Invergordon with Invergordon Off the Wall
Invergowrie with the six Dundee Rotary Clubs
Inverkeithing with the Inverkeithing & Dalgety Bay Rotary Club
Inverkip with In Work Ltd.
Inverurie with Watsons of Inverurie
Irvine with the South West Scotland Railway Adopters' Group
Jordanhill with Westbourne Gardens Nursery
Ladybank with the Ladybank Development Trust
Lairg with HITRANS
Langbank with In Work Ltd.
Larkhall with Machanhill Primary School with Goulding's Garden Centre
Laurencekirk with Mearns and Coastal Healthy Living
Leuchars with AM-PM Taxis
Lochwinnoch with the Community Council
Johnstone
Kilmarnock with Hurlford Gardening Club
Kilmaurs with the Kilmaurs Community Council
Kinghorn with the Kinghorn Studio and Art Gallery
Kirkcaldy with Kirkcaldy Rotary Club
Kirkconnel with the Kirkconnel Parish Heritage Society
Kirknewton
Lanark with Lanark in Bloom
Larbert with the Vale of Carron Rotary Club
Largs with the Largs Gardening Club
Laurencekirk with Mearns Academy
Lenzie with Lenzie Community Council
Linlithgow with Linlithgow Burgh Beautiful
Lockerbie with Lockerbie in Bloom
Longniddry with the Longniddry Community Council
Mallaig with the Lochaber Horticultural Association
Markinch with the Markinch Community Council
Maxwell Park with Pollokshields Heritage
Maybole with the South West Scotland Railway Adopters' Group
Milliken Park with In-Work Ltd
Milngavie with Milngavie in Bloom
Monifieth with the six Dundee Rotary Clubs
Montrose
Morar
Muir of Ord with the Tarradale Community Association
Neilston with the Neilston Development Trust
New Cumnock
Newcraighall with the Rotary Club of Portobello
Newton-on-Ayr with the South West Scotland Railway Adopters Group
North Berwick with North Berwick in Bloom
North Queensferry with North Queensferry School
Oban
Paisley Gilmour Street with In-Work Ltd.
Perth with Perth in Bloom
Pitlochry with Pitlochry in Bloom
Plockton with Off the Rails
Pollockshaws East with Locavore
Pollockshaws West with South West Community Cycles
Pollokshields East with The Hidden Gardens
Pollokshields West with Locavore
Port Glasgow with In Work Ltd.
Prestwick Town with the Station Cafe
Queens Park with Great Gardens
Rannoch with the Station Tearoom
Renton with Strathleven Artizans
Rosyth with the Inverkeithing & Dalgety Bay Rotary Club
Roy Bridge with the Glen Spean and Great Glen Marketing Group
Rutherglen with Langside College
Saltcoats with Boulevard Cafe
Sanquhar with the Brighten Up Sanquhar Group
Shawlands with Great Gardens
Shettleston with Playbusters
Shotts with Shape Up Shotts
South Gyle with the Rotary Club of Corstorphine
Spean Bridge with the Glen Spean and Great Glen Marketing Group
Stirling with the Rotary Club of Stirling
Stonehaven with Deeside Timberframes and the Stonehaven Horizon Group
Stranraer with the South West Scotland Railway Adopters' Group
Strathcarron
Stevenson with the South West Scotland Railway Adopters Group 
Tain with the Tain Environmental Improvement Group
Troon with the South West Scotland Railway Adopters' Group
Tulloch with The Station Lodge
Uddingston with Uddingston Pride
Uphall with Livingston Rotary
Upper Tyndrum
Wemyss Bay with the Friends of Wemyss Bay Station
Westerton with Westerton Primary School
West Calder
West Kilbride
Whitecraigs

We welcome the involvement of local communities in helping us to cultivate flowers and shrubs on our stations. If you’d like to get involved, why not read the information below and then make an application?

Exhibition Centre adopted station

Safety arrangements

While you’re on our premises, our concern is for your safety – and that of our passengers and staff. So we must ask you to abide by a few simple rules.

Click here for more information

Your contact will be with our local Station Team Manager, who will brief you on site prior to the commencement of the planting season. During the meeting to discuss the intended work the Station Team Manager will consider all aspects of rail safety including whether this will affect the sighting of signalling equipment, CIS monitors, and restricted widths of platforms and access routes, Thereafter all of the work that you do must be on the basis agreed with them, ie by named individuals, on specified days, at specified times, for the agreed range of activities. The Station Team Manager and ScotRail staff may make unannounced visits while work is taking place, and for your safety and the safety of others their instructions must be obeyed at all times.

At staffed stations all visitors must report to the station staff for briefing, and should sign in and out of the station individually. The staff are in charge of the location and you must always obey their instructions. If for any reason there are no staff present then the requirements for “unstaffed stations” apply.

At unstaffed stations the Station Team Manager will provide a copy of the local station emergency arrangements. Many stations now have on-line CCTV monitored from our Customer Services Centres at Paisley and Dunfermline. You should advise of your presence, as well as advising when you leave the premises to the CCTV operator using the nearest Help Point.

General Safety Arrangements

You must arrive and leave the station by the normal public access routes.

High visibility clothing must be worn at all times when on First ScotRail stations.

Work sites must be protected by barriers of suitably approved material to prohibit access to site from other station users

.

Overhead electrified line equipment will cause death if touched. Where the line is electrified, you or any tools and equipment must not come within 3 metres of the overhead line equipment. These requirements will be fully explained during the safety briefing.

You should not work or place tools and equipment within 2 metres of the platform edge. At stations where high speed trains pass this must be increased to 2.5 metres of the edge (you will be advised if the increased requirement applies during the safety briefing with the Station Team Manager).

Hard hats or bumps caps must be worn when working under footbridges or other structures less than 2m in height. Safety glasses/ goggles must be worn when working above head height and if risk of splashing exists. Safety footwear must be worn at all times. Safety gloves must be worn at all times [these should thickness durability also provide protection against needles and syringe injuries].

Hoses or pressure washers must NOT be used, and water should be carried in an appropriate container. Any spillages must be cleaned up immediately.

No debris must be allowed to accumulate on platforms or access routes. This must be removed from the site at the end of each working day. Safe access for other station users should be maintained at all times.

Any work at height which requires the use of ladders or other access equipment will require location specific approval by our Facilities Department/Safety Section. If approval is giving then this equipment must be certified as fit for use six monthly. Companies which can certify this equipment include http://www.clowgroup.co.uk/.

Any work which requires powered equipment e.g. strimmers, cultivators, hedge trimmers, etc will require location specific approval by our Facilities Department/Safety Section. Equipment must be certified as fit for use by an approved maintenance contractor. Equipment users must have a current operators certificate.

Any proposed work which requires to be carried out on embankments or gradients must be discussed and agreed by our Facilities Department.

The use of chemicals, pesticides, petrol/diesel fuel must be strictly controlled and is subject to approval by ScotRail following provision of appropriate COSHH assessments/method statements.

Before authority is given for minors or people with special needs to work at locations ScotRail will require a comprehensive method statement detailing the control measures which will ensure the safety and supervision of individuals.

ScotRail suggests that individuals have had basic Manual Handling instruction.

Making your proposal

Please ensure you have read the safety arrangements first, then either print out the form, complete the details and return it to this address:

John Yellowlees
First ScotRail
Atrium Court
50 Waterloo Street
Glasgow
G2 6HQ
(T 0141-335 4787 or F:0141-335 4791).

Or download your application form here.