Work on Tyne and Wear Metro station benefits local community hub

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Work on Tyne and Wear Metro station benefits local community hub

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Picture of Roger Smith

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The restored station sign at Whitley Bay Metro station. // Credit: Nexus
The restored station sign at Whitley Bay Metro station. // Credit: Nexus

Work to restore the canopy at Whitley Bay station on the has also helped to improve the town’s community hub, which has also undergone vital renovation work as part of the project.

The canopy at Whitley Bay station is Grade II Listed, and Kier Transportation, which is part of the Kier Group, was contracted to carry out the £5.3m project to refurbish it as part of a social value plan that ensures community engagement while on site.

The new canopy at Whitley Bay Metro station. // Credit: Nexus
The new canopy at Whitley Bay station. // Credit:

Volunteers from and Nexus, which operates the Tyne and Wear Metro, gave up their time during Christmas to renovate an activity room at the venue which is in Whitley Road, Whitley Bay.

The activity room is being updated to create a much warmer and tidier space for group activities, conferences, and meetings, and the volunteers spent three days painting and decorating the room.

Located in a former job centre, the Community Hub is run by a local charity called the Whitley Bay Big Local.

The charity acquired the building in 2021 using grants funding from the Government Levelling Up fund and a loan from Charity Bank. The hub is a multi-purpose community space with meeting rooms, café, garden, and a food bank.

Working on Whitley Bay canopy
Working on Whitley Bay canopy // Credit: Nexus

Refurbishment of the canopy at Whitley Bay station is due to be completed in the next few months, and customers are already feeling the benefit now that the scaffolding has been taken down.

“I’m delighted that Whitley Bay Metro Station has been refurbished to such a high standard. It’s great for local residents to have the station updated, without losing its historic appeal. We were delighted to welcome volunteers from Kier and Nexus to update the activity space at Whitley Bay Hub. The room has been brightened up, with a new colour scheme and they even updated our windowsills. The volunteers worked very hard over Christmas and New Year, coming in on evenings and Saturdays to get the job finished before we welcomed our groups and activities back in this January.”

David Carnaffan, Chief Executive at Whitley Bay Big Local

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