{"id":29080,"date":"2024-04-20T00:36:53","date_gmt":"2024-04-19T14:36:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.vibewire.com.au\/?p=29080"},"modified":"2024-04-20T00:36:53","modified_gmt":"2024-04-19T14:36:53","slug":"good-news-friday-your-weekly-roundup-of-positive-rail-news-6","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.vibewire.com.au\/?p=29080","title":{"rendered":"Good News Friday: Your weekly roundup of positive rail news!"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u201cRailway stations are a great \u2018platform\u2019 for my work\u201d, says artist on a mission to inspire region\u2019s neurodivergent residents<\/strong><\/p>\n

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An autistic artist from Middleton in Rochdale, Greater Manchester has spoken out about the role that railway stations have played in his mission to inspire the region\u2019s neurodivergent residents.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Dez, who also goes by the name LoveArtPix, is an artist and campaigner whose work can be found at transport hubs across the North West.<\/p>\n

Speaking as part of an event to mark Autism Awareness Month (1-30 April), Dez said: \u201cRailway stations are a great \u2018platform\u2019 for my work.<\/p>\n

\u201cNot everyone will find themselves in an art gallery or exhibition hall, but millions of people pass through train stations every year as they go about their daily lives \u2013 and it is in these everyday moments that, I believe, you can really inspire someone.\u201d<\/p>\n

In June 2020, his\u00a0first artwork at a railway station\u00a0was unveiled at Manchester Oxford Road and just under a year later\u00a0his work appeared at Manchester Victoria as part of a series of events to mark the fourth anniversary of the Manchester Arena attack.<\/p>\n

And it is at Manchester Victoria where two of his biggest pieces of art can be found, with a\u00a0huge mural of the Manchester skyline\u00a0and\u00a0a tribute to the station itself\u00a0found on the passenger footbridge that links many of the platforms.<\/p>\n

Other stations on the Northern network that have inspired artwork by Dez include\u00a0Blackpool North\u00a0in Lancashire and\u00a0Grange-over-Sands\u00a0in Cumbria.<\/p>\n

Dez added: \u201cI find creating artwork a great way to focus and my message is always one of positivity \u2013 to encourage people to keep going, stay focussed, don\u2019t be deterred and never stop asking questions!\u201d<\/p>\n

For his work and contribution to the local community, Dez won an Autism Hero Award in 2023 and has recently been nominated for the Positive Role Model for Disability Award in the National Diversity Awards 2024.<\/p>\n

For more information about the National Diversity Awards and to vote for Dez to win in his category,\u00a0please click here<\/strong><\/a>.<\/p>\n

Craig Harrop, regional director for Northern<\/a>, said: \u201cDez is an incredible guy and a real inspiration.<\/p>\n

\u201cOver several years now, we\u2019ve been able to develop our partnership with him and showcase his work as well as the meaning behind it to millions of customers passing through our stations.<\/p>\n

\u201cHis is an important message and we\u2019re happy to support it.\u201d<\/p>\n

For more information about Dez and his work, visit:\u00a0www.loveartpix.co.uk<\/a>\u00a0<\/strong>\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u2018Bug hotels\u2019 coming to three Northern railway stations on the Bentham Line to support biodiversity<\/strong><\/p>\n\n

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Northern<\/a> is set to open \u2018bug hotels\u2019 at three stations on the Bentham Line between Leeds and Morecambe as part of a project with local schools to support biodiversity.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Undergraduates working for the train operator as part of their \u2018Year in Industry\u2019 will lead the sessions with local schools, which are designed to educate schoolchildren on biodiversity and the importance of caring for local habitats.<\/p>\n

The workshops, which are being delivered in partnership with Bentham Community Rail Partnership, will take place at schools in Lancashire and West Yorkshire.<\/p>\n

The \u2018bug hotels\u2019 will be created from old wooden pallets and when complete will contain a variety of repurposed materials including twigs, bamboo canes and corrugated carboard.<\/p>\n

Mike Roe, safety and environment director at Northern, said: \u201cWe\u2019re committed to making a positive contribution to the environmental sustainability of the areas in which we operate.<\/p>\n

\u201cBug hotels are a small but practical solution to increase biodiversity at our stations and I\u2019m excited to see the end result of the hard work by our \u2018Year in Industry\u2019 colleagues and the students at the schools along the Bentham Line.\u201d<\/p>\n

Workshops are set to take place before the end of the summer term and stations will be selected based on their proximity to participating schools.<\/p>\n

Gerald Townson, chairman of the Leeds-Morecambe Community Rail Partnership, said; \u201cAs the railway looks to improve station and lineside environments, we are delighted that the \u2018Year in Industry\u2019 students this year have chosen a biodiversity theme for their community project.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey are keen to work with primary school pupils in Giggleswick, Long Preston and Keighley to raise awareness of the Bentham Line\u2019s ecology and engage the pupils in the creation of insect habitats and pollinator patches at the schools and stations.\u201d<\/p>\n

Northern is the second largest train operator in the UK, with 2,500 services a day to more than 500 stations across the North of England.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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More Like This<\/strong><\/p>\n

Good News Friday: Your weekly roundup of positive rail news! (12\/04\/2024)<\/a><\/h3>\n

Good News Friday: Your weekly roundup of positive rail news! (05\/04\/2024)<\/a><\/h3>\n

Good News Friday: Your weekly roundup of positive rail news! (29\/05\/2024)<\/a><\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u201cRailway stations are a great \u2018platform\u2019 for my work\u201d, says artist on a mission to inspire region\u2019s neurodivergent residents \u00a0 An autistic artist from Middleton […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":20298,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[32,47,488],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-29080","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news-and-opinion","category-rail-news","category-railway-stations"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t