The refurbished station building at Henley-in-Arden in Warwickshire was offically opened yesterday, Thursday, 22 February, by Network Rail‘s Lord Peter Hendy.

Alongside Lord Hendy was representatives from the Railway Heritage Trust, Henley-in-Arden Parish Council, West Midlands Railway, Friends of the Shakespeare Line, and Friends of Henley Railway Station.

The original station building was built in 1908, but in the 1990s it was closed and boarded up although the station remained open.

The building has been repurposed, and is now into a stylish and welcoming community space and bar.

Friends of Henley Railway Station was formed in 2020 as a Community Interest Company.

Becoming concerned about the building’s deterioration signs of anti-social behaviour, the group stepped in to push for its transformation.

With support from Network Rail, West Midlands Railway, Henley-in-Arden Parish Council and the Railway Heritage Trust, the group carried out structural repairs to the building before transforming into a fantastic community bar and lounge.

The building now has its own microbrewery run by local residents, with its products being served in the bar alongside other local beers and wines.

The lounge is a multi-functional community space fitted with with IT facilities, and can be hired for small functions. Any profits will be reinvested by the group back into the building, facilities and station area.

Peter, Lord Hendy, chair of Network Rail, said: “It’s an absolute pleasure to officially open this brilliant new community space that has been created in the old station building.

“It is wonderful to see partners and volunteers coming together to put the railway at the heart of the local community.

“I’d like to thank everybody involved in this project and I hope passengers from Henley and beyond will experience the benefits that this repurposed building brings for years to come.”

Angela Okey, chair of Friends of Henley Railway Station, said: “After living in Henley for several years and walking my dogs past the derelict station building every morning, it saddened me to see the state of disrepair of what was once an iconic and beautiful building.

“The aim was always to make this a community project and by involving local people with the same love of their town, it has been a delight to work on and watch the enthusiasm of everyone.

“As well as being a welcoming meeting place for residents, we hope it will attract more footfall to our beautiful town of Henley-in-Arden, which in turn will support our local businesses and traders.”

Tim Hedley-Jones, Executive Director of the Railway Heritage Trust, said: “We are pleased to have supported this project with grants to restore the building, and we have presented the station with a plaque to record its history which Lord Peter Hendy has unveiled today. It is a testament to the community that they have brought the building back from dereliction.”

Jonny Wiseman, customer experience director at West Midlands Railway, said: “We are thrilled to see the opening of a new community space which will offer a new lease of life for Henley-in-Arden Station and we were delighted to be able to support the project through our Customer and Communities Improvement Fund.

“Community projects play an important role in enhancing the customer experience at local stations and Henley-in-Arden will hugely benefit from this refurbishment.”

Fraser Pithie, chair of Friends of the Shakespeare Line, said: “What has been delivered by the Friends of Henley Railway Station shows the tremendous impact that people from their own community can achieve when they come together for the benefit of their community and engage with the railway. This is an awesome facility which will benefit the community, local economy, railways and encourage people to travel by train.”