25% cuts in funding to Community Rail

[Killingworth]

I understand that all TOCs have been advised that the funding granted to support CRPs and station adoption groups is being cut by 25%. A cut was anticipated but the details may only have been confirmed last week.

No doubt others will have more information. It will be for each TOC to decide how it readjusts support given.

I'm sure I saw somewhere (probably ACoRP now CRN?) that lines and stations with support groups tend to outperform those without for growth in passenger numbers.

 

[zwk500]

I understand that all TOCs have been advised that the funding granted to support CRPs and station adoption groups is being cut by 25%. A cut was anticipated but the details may only have been confirmed last week.

No doubt others will have more information. It will be for each TOC to decide how it readjusts support given.

I'm sure I saw somewhere (probably ACoRP now CRN?) that lines and stations with support groups tend to outperform those without for growth in passenger numbers.

This is a real shame if so. CRPs have done wonders for many small branch lines. They've varied in effectiveness - some have just kept the stations tidier than if the TOC had been left to it's own devices, but others have come up with very good ideas to boost usage, utilising local knowledge really well.

 

[Killingworth]

The Community Rail Network put out the following statement on Tuesday 6th June. It confirms what I'd heard as breaking news 3 weeks ago. There will be variations in implementation across TOCs both as to how and when the cuts are made. 25% cuts here won't save very much but every little clearly helps. There are unlikely to be massive protests about it.

,

Community Rail Network updates on protecting community rail funding I am writing to update you, as members of Community Rail Network, on our ongoing response to the Government’s train operator budget reviews for this financial year and minimising the impact for community rail. This follows on from communications some of you have had directly from your train operating companies (TOCs). I firstly want to assure that the majority of CRP core funding for this year is safe and has been protected by the train operators, and we know that most CRPs have had their core funding already, ahead of budgets being reviewed. Those CRPs whose core funding is being looked at have had communications from their train operators and so should be clear on the current position, and should continue to liaise with their main contacts there. Our role The Community Rail Network team has been doing as much as we can, working closely with DfT and TOC colleagues, to safeguard community rail funding. We fully recognise how important this is to helping communities get maximum value from their railways and promoting sustainable, inclusive travel by rail. We understand it is being reported tomorrow in the rail press that across all TOCs combined, 25% in savings is being required from community rail spending in 2023-24. We were notified of these spending restraints recently and, since then, have been working to advise TOCs and DfT on how to minimise detriment, while liaising with those CRPs that may be directly affected. Our role is limited to advising on how cuts could be made to avoid the worst effects, so we are doing as much as we can on this basis, prioritising the protection of core funding on which CRPs depend, and explaining why this is so important. I’m sure you will all appreciate that this is an extremely sensitive situation, hence wider communications with you all have not been appropriate until now. Our priorities Our priority is to help protect all that we’ve built up together in community rail. In the light of budget reviews stipulated by DfT, we are advising train operators on how to minimise detriment to the community rail movement, especially by prioritising the protection of community rail partnership core funding, to ensure the best possible outlook for CRPs and their staff. While no funding cuts are desirable, we have advised that if they must be made due to the challenging circumstances we are in, then only biddable funding pots should be reduced, while aiming to ensure that all CRPs and station friends continue to have access to some project funds and grants. We are also advising DfT on the terms for its Community Rail Development Fund to see if any helpful adjustments could be made to increase the usefulness of this fund at the current time. We also continue to explore and develop wider sources of income and support, for core and project funding for CRPs and station friends, and will update further on this through our bulletin and our team in the coming months. Looking ahead We will continue to liaise directly with CRPs, DfT and the train operators. While our attentions have so far been focused on the funding for 2023-24, we will soon turn our attentions to 2024-25 to ensure community rail is protected and can develop longer-term. We are committed to doing all we can to protect future train operator funding, while also looking at ways to help CRPs bring in greater funding from wider sources.