Ashford College ESOL Student Train Travel Training and gardening support to station adopters at Borough Green & Wrotham Station, 30 June 2026

A group of people on a narrow station platform pose for a photo. There are bags of weeds that have been removed from an adjacent flower bed and a bucket of fresh plants. One person is still actively weeding whilst the photo is being taken.

Kent CRP managed a train travel training Train Travel Training session from Ashford International with a gardening session at Borough Green & Wrotham (BG&W) station for 19 Ashford College students whose first language is not English (ESOL) and 3 of their tutors. 

 

We met Janet and Janice, the long standing station adopters at BG&W station who provided us with our gardening tasks.  Some students planted 4 large plants and 12 smaller ones into the bank on platform 1; these plants will provide ground coverage in blue and white.  Thank you, Toni, our very supportive station manager for providing encouragement, water and the plants.  The rest of the students worked with Janet and Janice to weed a large area of the platform 2 beds.  For this first visit we just stayed the hour between trains however, it was remarked that this was over 20 hours of weeding and planting which would have taken several days for Janet & Janice to achieve.

 

The students seemed a little reluctant at first which was not surprising as the weather was windy and very drizzly however, they soon started making great progress with the tasks and large bags of weeds and shrub cuttings were being removed from the platform

A person wearing a black jacket and trousers, with headphones on sitting onboard a train People planting flowers in a wide grass verge beside a station platform. A person wearing a black jacket and trousers with a black bag beside them sitting onboard a train.

 

 

This event provided many benefits and outputs

  • Positive social interactions between generations
  • The creation of meaningful connections between students and local communities
  • Improvements to the station environments, creating a more pleasant and relaxing place to await a train
  • Students developed gardening skills some of whom had never planted a plant
  • Provision of volunteering opportunities for station adopters and students
  • Station adopters felt supported and were very grateful to the students who helped them improve their station
  • The small positive interactions can help reduce feelings of stress, loneliness, and social isolation for all who were volunteering together for a common purpose
  • The event created opportunities for meaningful interactions between students, station adopters and rail staff who might not otherwise engage with one another
  • Enhanced perception of young people – the students demonstrated responsibility and care for their community, helping to build stronger intergenerational relationships
  • Passengers took the opportunity to ask the students about what they were doing. Each time students positively interact with the public at our stations it builds their confidence which is humbling to observe over the years.  It is clear that their understanding and use of the English language is also improving.
Two people standing on a station platform beside a planted garden bed Two people planting flowers in a grassed verge A person with a broom sweeps a station platform

Station adopter quotes

Janice, “The students have been great they worked so hard.”

Janet, “It would have taken us 2 weeks to achieve what was achieved this morning!”

 

Student quotes

“Oh no is it time to go, we haven’t finished can we come back?”

“Thank you it was good.”

“I love it lets do more.”

“It was lovely, a good idea, more learning about gardening.”

“It was good.”

“I love gardening as well.  I think it would be better to do it more often.”

 

Tutor quotes

Chris, “I’m always amazed at how the students get involved in things outside.”

Sarah, “They were keen to get on as it was hands on despite the weather.”

 

Students gained confidence in travelling by train during this trip and previous trips, some of whom are now independent train travellers.  All said they enjoyed participating in the gardening despite the weather!  Train Travel Training is a valuable tool to bring students onto the railway enabling them to have greater access to education, employment and leisure.

View of people gardening in planted beds alongside a narrow station platform Four people sat around a table onboard a train. They are all casually dressed.

Due to the success of the event and the desire to repeat it Janet, Janice and the tutors have shared their email addresses to enable future events to be managed without Kent CRP Officer input.