Cambridgeshire County Council’s fostering service has partnered with Govia Thameslink to repot the planters at their local train stations, starting with Huntingdon.
Staff, foster carers and children in care worked together to plant new flowers outside Huntingdon station and on its platforms in April, with further activities planned in May.
The group project was coordinated by the council’s fostering recruitment team along with Fiona Blackwell, Huntingdon Train Station Manager and Andrew Chillingsworth, Govia Thameslink’s community engagement manager, with significant contributions from foster carer Jess Baxter and her foster child.
Jess said: “I really enjoyed the gardening day at the train station – it was such a lovely way to spend time outdoors in the beautiful sun. It was especially heartwarming to see my girls getting stuck in and enjoying themselves.
“We had a lovely time catching up with Paula and Mick from the Mockingbird Hub. We also had the opportunity to meet some new faces we haven’t seen before which is always nice.
One of Jess’s foster children has been instrumental in the fostering service’s plans to revitalise the stations. Many of her ideas, such as displaying children in care’s artwork and hosting a free book exchange with promotional bookmarks, have already become a reality at both Huntingdon and St Neots stations.
“It’s been great for us to make the station prettier,” she said. “It’ll help us to find more foster carers, like Jess, who really love you”.
Ana Caldararu, Service Manager, Fostering at Cambridgeshire County Council, said “Organising the garden activity alongside Govia Thameslink has been a wonderful way to foster a sense of community among our foster carers and children. It was beautiful to see Cambridgeshire's vibrant and supportive fostering community coming together, sharing the joy of gardening, and not just planting flower seeds but also planting seeds in people's hearts and minds for the need of foster carers.”
Fiona Blackwell, Huntingdon Station Manager, said: “It was fantastic to involve Cambridgeshire County Council Fostering Service in our gardening project, which will help to improve biodiversity in the area. We hope this will help customers connect with nature as more people travel across our network now that spring is in full swing.”
The previous Mayor of Huntingdon, Cllr Karl Brockett, also visited the gardening event to show his support.
The fostering service has planned to plant new flowers at St Neots train station on 19 May, plus more activities during Foster Care Fortnight (12-25 May 2025). This national awareness campaign is hosted by the UK’s leading fostering charity, the Fostering Network.
You can keep up to date with the fostering service’s activities by following their social media accounts:
If you would like to find out more about fostering with the council, please visit our website or call 0800 052 0078.
