Schoolchildren in Saddleworth, Greater Manchester, have produced artwork highlighting their pride in the local area, which is now on display at Greenfield station.
Mossley-based artist Chris Cyprus guided pupils from Saddleworth High School and the wider area in creating art that illustrates what makes them proud of the place where they live. Chris showed them how to work to a brief, and gave insight on the development of their art.
Pupils contributed various images to the project. One focused on the Dovestones reservoir and the fond memories it holds of her late mother. Another showed her affection for Saddleworth where she now lives after fleeing Ukraine to escape the Russian invasion.
Greenfield station is on the Huddersfield Line twelve miles (20 km) northeast of Manchester Victoria, and is the last station in Greater Manchester before the West Yorkshire boundary.
The project is titled ‘Routes to roots: a platform for art', and has been funded by the Transpennine Route Upgrade. As part of the Upgrade, Greenfield station will be improved, and made fully accessible for the first time.
The Transpennine Route Upgrade has committed to delivering a minimum 50p value to society for every pound spent on construction, aiming to generate £4.28 billion of social value.
Chris Cyprus, artist leading the project said: “The Routes to Roots project taps into the creative potential of gifted students who are still in the process of discovering their future direction. Hopefully this will provide inspiration during a pivotal stage of their lives.
Natalie Hewitt, Senior Sponsor for Transpennine Route Upgrade said: “The Transpennine Route Upgrade will create opportunities for these young people as they enter the world of work or higher education later in the decade.
“Their pride in Saddleworth and the talent and dedication they have applied to this project is inspirational and we know that our ambition for the future of rail travel to and from Greenfield will match it.”
Craig Harrop, Regional Director at Northern, said: “It's wonderful to see the wealth of creative talent that we have in Saddleworth, which is now on display for everybody to see here at the heart of the community. The entries to the competition have been fantastic, and will really transform the station environment as we head into the programme of station upgrades.”
