Planting a platform for community engagement

Haringey residents and railway passengers who travel through Alexandra Palace station are in the pink after a community-focused project transformed a pair of platforms into hotbeds of horticulture.

Complementing the concerted efforts already undertaken by the Friends of Alexandra Palace Station, a ‘Green Team’ of horticultural trainees have installed a number of planters on Platforms 3 & 4 – bringing an array of colour and scents to the main platforms and lifting commuters’ spirits in the process.

The Green Team trainees, some of whom have been recruited through the government's Kickstart scheme, also learned new skills and techniques through this initiative, such as construction and tool use; plant identification and care and learning on planning – and planting out – complementary schemes with plants that are best suited to grow together overall.

A mural has been created by local artist Edward Quigley in the foyer of the station too, featuring palms and planting from Alexandra Palace and the station as well as local landmarks.

Local stakeholders and passengers were asked what improvements they would like to see at their stations during an engagement programme run by Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR) back in 2019.

Following subsequent approval by the Department for Transport (DfT), GTR are now delivering over 1,000 affordable and feasible schemes at more than 250 stations right across the network.

Enhancements at Alexandra Palace also include a refurbished waiting room, automatic doors for a platform shelter, and upgraded customer information systems.

Cllr Mike Hakata, the Deputy Leader of Haringey Council and Cabinet Member for Environment, Transport and the Climate Emergency, said:

It’s fantastic what can be achieved when people work together towards a common goal, and the results here at Ally Pally station speak for themselves.

I’m really pleased that local stakeholders and passengers were consulted on their priorities, with the works undertaken at the station being reflective of their views accordingly.

It’s very important that all public bodies, including the council, listen to the public and act on what we hear.

I’d like to thank the Green Team and local artist Edward Quigley for all their hard work in making this project come to life so vividly and evocatively.

Cllr Hakata was in attendance at Tuesday’s official launch event with the government’s Rail Minister, Chris Heaton-Harris MP, Graham Parry, Groundwork London’s Director of Youth Employment and Skills, and Tom Moran, the Managing Director of Thameslink Great Northern.