Continuing its support for local charities, Hull Trains is supporting the charity, Hull 4 Heroes, by offering free Standard Class travel to London for serving military personnel and veterans attending Remembrance services on Sunday, 13th, November.

The offer is for anyone in uniform or with a Ministry of Defence-issued ID card for travel to any London Terminal station on Saturday, 12th or Sunday, 13th of November and returning on 13th November.

Veteran Paul Matson founded the charity in November 2016 after he returned home from service with the Armed Forces. He found himself homeless and struggling on Civvy Street, but with the support of others, he got back on his feet and found a job in the building trade. That led him to volunteer on BBC’s ‘DIY SOS’ programme, working on the Veteran Street project in Manchester.

Paul’s hometown is Hull, and after spotting some derelict houses and being inspired by his experiences in Manchester, he started his own renovation project which led to him establishing Hull 4 Heroes. With support from local people, businesses, and Hull and East Riding Council, the charity has secured funding from the government. Paul regularly uses Hull Trains to attend meetings at the House of Commons and recently met with the Minister of State for the Armed Forces and Veterans.

Paul took time out from his busy schedule to express his gratitude to the team at Hull Trains and said:“Hull Trains have been a great support to all of us at Hull 4 Heroes. Their staff are second-to-none and always go above and beyond whenever we travel on their services. The first time we travelled with them we had standard tickets, but the onboard manager called us out and took us straight through to first class!

“They can never help us enough and there’s a great feeling on the train and in the stations, they really are a big part of the community. I’d like to thank them on behalf of all our veterans for the help they have given us over the years.”

The group made headlines this year when Paul along with 15 military veterans travelled on Hull Trains’ services to London to pay their respects to Queen Elizabeth II. They visited Buckingham Palace, Westminster, and Green Park, where they laid flowers.

Services may be busy, so it is recommended that seats are reserved via a booking office or by emailing [email protected] with your origin and destination, time of the train, and the number of travellers. You can find more information on the scheme here:  https://www.nationalrail.co.uk/times_fares/remembrance-sunday.aspx.

Martijn Gilbert, Managing Director of Hull Trains, added: “Charities and volunteers play a vital role to the people of Hull and surrounding areas so we are pleased to help out in any way we can. We thank Hull 4 Heroes for all that they do in the local community, and we look forward to welcoming them onboard our services in the future.”
Other local charities that Hull Trains supports include Hull Truck Theatre and Hull Childrens University Charity.