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Accessible travel across Greater Manchester

There are 96 train stations in Greater Manchester - and less than half have step-free access. 

At this rate of progress, disabled people will have to wait until 2070 for all stations to be accessible in Britain.

When people rely on public transport, this is a massive barrier to their independence, employment, and social wellbeing. We’re campaigning to make stations across the UK accessible – starting with Ashburys train station in Openshaw, Manchester.

How accessible is your local station?

Background

In January 2023, our campaigns team visited Bridge College alongside campaigner Nathaniel Yates to kickstart our work on making the local Ashburys’ train station accessible.

Nathaniel inspired our students by sharing how he has managed to secure funding for his local station, Reddish North. You can read more about his campaign here.

Ashburys train station is only 0.3 miles away from Bridge College but is inaccessible. During our visit, students told us that they were travelling by taxi or school bus to College and expressed the unfairness of facing the inaccessibility barrier.

Although the station requires step-free access, Ashburys is number 32 on the Greater Manchester AfA priority list, indicating that it might take years to get funding for accessibility improvements.

Going forward, we will continue to support Nathaniel’s campaign, and work towards influencing change for Ashbury train station. We want the station to become accessible so everybody can benefit from it, whether commuting to school, work or using it for leisure.

“We live in the 21st century, everything is supposed to be accessible - and the Equality Act if there for a reason. Reasonable adjustments should be made.”
Campaigner Nathaniel Yates

How you can take action

  • Sign Nathaniel's petition to Stockport Council, 'How accessible is your local train station?'.
  • Visit your local train station in Greater Manchester or Stockport and take photos of it if it is inaccessible! Tag @NathanielSAYS and @TogetherTrust in the photo on Twitter using the hashtag #GMRailAccess.
  • Sign up for our campaigning updates to hear more about how we are supporting Nathaniel's campaign: https://secure.togethertrust.org.uk/sign-our-latest-campaigning-news-and-opportunities

Bridge students bring local community issues to the attention of Andy Burnham

17 October 2023

Bridge College students left a lasting impression on Andy Burnham, the Mayor of Greater Manchester, during his visit to our campus on October 6 2023.

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Mental Health Awareness Week 2023: How public transport affects disabled people's mental health

15 May 2023

In light of Mental Health Awareness Week, we want to shed some light on how people's mental health is affected by their experiences with public transport.

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We responded to the accessible transport inquiry

22 March 2023

On 20 March we responded to the Transport Select Committee’s inquiry on accessible transport, which was set up to find ways to make different modes of transport, public and private, more accessible to disabled people and those with access needs. 

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Zero Discrimination Day

23 February 2023

On 1 March, we celebrate Zero Discrimination Day: a day which aims to end all forms of discrimination.

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We want Ashburys train station to be accessible for all

27 January 2023

Last week, our campaigns team visited Bridge College alongside Nathaniel Yates to kickstart our work on making the local Ashburys' train station accessible.

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An update on Nathaniel Yates’ #GMRailAccess Campaign

18 November 2022

After years of tireless campaigning, Nathaniel’s local train station, Reddish North, was awarded funding to make it fully accessible in 2021. Despite his campaign's success, public transport within other parts of Greater Manchester continues to be inaccessible. This has a major impact on disabled people’s lives.

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Supporting Nathaniel Yates’ #GMRailAccess Campaign

7 November 2022

In 2018, Nathaniel Yates, a former student of Stockport College, started a grassroots campaign with the aim of making local train stations more accessible for all, including people with physical and invisible disabilities.

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Campaigning

For 150 years we’ve been working tirelessly to champion the voices of the people we support. And over the last decade we’ve continued to campaign for positive change in our local and national communities.

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SEND reforms

We are campaigning for a SEND system that does not cut corners and is built around the needs of the child. 

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Keep Caring to 18

We believe that every child in care should be guaranteed care up to the age of 18 but new government legislation will leave thousands* of children without care every year.

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Contact us: Together Trust Centre, Schools Hill, Cheadle, Cheshire SK8 1JE | Tel: 0161 283 4848

Established 1870 | Registered charity No. 209782 | Registered in England 00301722 | Vat No. 611 4005 06