Avanti West Coast is supporting a project which highlights the record-breaking women’s football team Dick, Kerr Ladies, which was created by Community Rail Lancashire.

The project will see a series of postcards that celebrate the achievements of the team, and follows the release of a recent short film ‘Granny’ that celebrates Lizzy Ashcroft, a member of the Dick, Kerr Ladies team.

To increase engagement of the short film Community Rail Lancashire paired up with young people part of an internship programme called DFN Project SEARCH to create the postcards.

They worked with artist Karen Allerton and participated in workshops to create designs for the postcards which would celebrate the team.

The group travelled to by train to the National Football Museum to aid in their inspiration. They produced six specially designed postcards

They will be handing them out to passengers at Preston station and write and deliver the postcards to care homes and members of the community. Community Rail Lancashire will be giving them out to schools, colleges and community groups in the area.

Joanna Buckley, Community Manager at Avanti West Coast, said: “We want to connect young people to opportunity and by supporting this great project they have been able to experience rail travel, learn a key part of football and social history, as well as engage with the local community.

“We’re proud to have worked with Community Rail Lancashire to raise awareness of the Dick, Kerr Ladies amongst local people here in Preston, and help keep their fascinating story alive has been brilliant, as we want to champion the places we serve and celebrate their heritage. As England’s Lionesses prepare for the Women’s Euro Final, we hope this project will spark an interest in women’s football and inspire the next generation to pass on a key part of Preston’s history.”

Katie Douglas, Accessibility and Inclusion Officer at Community Rail Lancashire, said: “Community Rail Lancashire is uniquely placed to be a bridge between the rail industry and the communities they serve. With a particular emphasis on developing rail confidence amongst younger people it has been an absolute privilege to work with DFN Project Search. Their enthusiasm to learn about this important part of history and take part in a creative workshop has resulted in a set of postcards that they should be very proud of. In the words of one young person, “I felt really inspired as I couldn’t believe how much history there was about the Dick, Kerr Ladies and I liked that we got to build more independence by catching the train.”