A Customer and Community Improvement Fund has been launched by Great Western Railway to celebrate the 200th anniversary of the modern railway.

GWR is inviting applications for the 2025 Customer and Community Improvement Fund, with a particular focus on projects that connect to the Railway 200 celebrations.

As the rail industry reflects on the past 200 years and looks forward to an exciting future, GWR is keen to sponsor projects which celebrate the railway, enhance local communities and address areas of social need.

GWR has a long tradition in leading the way in developing the country’s railways – from incredible feats of Victorian engineering to innovation making the fastest locomotives in the world, and becoming the beating heart of many communities across the South-West.

The GWR Customer and Community Improvement Fund supports projects that enable and encourage local people to use the train in the communities the railway serves.

From funding an armoured heart sculpture to raise awareness of knife crime to supporting young people through sport GWR is committed to helping schools, colleges, councils, community and other not-for-profit organisations by aiding several initiatives.

Recently successful projects have included £19,950 for a project to preserve and celebrate Gloucestershire LGBTQIA+ histories and enhance travel accessibility.

Schemes must show a link to the railway and offer a tangible benefit to customers and the community with an emphasis on inclusion and diversity, youth engagement, careers in rail and increasing rail travel.

GWR Senior Community Impact Manager, Emma Morris, said: “Our Customer and Community Improvement Fund is a fantastic opportunity for us to invest locally in projects that have a positive impact for our customers and our communities, especially as we celebrate 200 years of the railway.

“We have had a broad range of bids that have been successful in the past; from small projects looking at the history and heritage of GWR stations, wayfinding schemes making it easier for people to navigate to and from the station, to outreach programmes focusing on careers in the railway encouraging inclusion and diversity.

“We are committed to improving the journeys of our passengers, as well as the economic prosperity and social footprint of the regions and communities we serve, and we look forward to receiving a variety of bids which will have positive local impact.”

There must be a link to the railway in every project and all bids must address an area of social need. To find out more about the fund, submit an application, or find our guidance booklet, please click here. Schemes must be delivered and completed by the end of March 2026.

Emma Roberts, Programme Manager for Railway 200, said: “This year’s bicentenary of the modern railway is a major national milestone for a British invention that changed the world. Through GWR’s anniversary-related fund, and a wide variety of activities and events throughout the year, we hope it will also have a positive impact on communities, offering opportunities for all.”

Applications must be submitted before midnight on Friday 31 January.