I am registered severely visually impaired. Yeovil Pen Mill is my local train station. I need staff assistance to be able to use the station safely (I need assistance both with station navigation and boarding/alighting trains).

The train station is ran by GWR and I have been shocked to learn that they only employ two members of staff to work at the station who work separate shifts. Those two members of staff work in the Ticket Office but also undertake other duties such as providing Passenger Assistance for disabled passengers. 

When the two permanent members of staff are unavailable eg due to holidays or illness GWR have on a number of occasions over the years failed to provide cover staff leaving the station and Ticket Office unstaffed during its scheduled staffing hours.

The staffing situation effects the provision of assistance at the station for disabled passengers especially for those like me who require assistance with station navigation (eg guiding/accompanying over the stepped footbridge or track crossing when needing to go to/from platform 3) as I understand only station staff can assist with this as train crews are supposed to stay with trains.

I have currently felt the need to make the sad decision to stop using the station due to the issues with staffing and the knock on effect this has to the provision of assistance at the station. This is not a decision I wanted to have to make - as a visually impaired person I’m not able to drive, I have to rely on public transport but I need the station to be reliably staffed. My mental health has been affected by the situation with the station and at times I have felt quite some distress. 

The people of Yeovil deserve better. They deserve to have their train station and Ticket Office reliably staffed its scheduled hours.  Sometimes it is unstaffed for a full day at a time when it should be staffed and this is unacceptable

I would have loved a train trip on my birthday this year but that idea was promptly knocked on the head when I found out from the National Rail website the station would be unstaffed for the day! (meaning I wouldn’t be able to get the assistance I’d need 😞)

 Although on this petition I’ve focused mainly on the needs of disabled passengers obviously others need help and support from staff too.

The staff at the station also deserve better. My understanding is the current Manager for Yeovil Pen Mill station is based at Westbury station and visits Yeovil Pen Mill once a month. My impression is that the staff at Yeovil Pen Mill are not receiving the support they need and deserve.  

I’m grateful to the two staff employed by GWR to work at the station for the assistance they have provided me when using the station - this petition is not to attack them in any way, it is to raise concerns about how central GWR are choosing to run the station.

i have tried to discuss my concerns with GWR about staffing, cover and the provision of assistance at Yeovil Pen Mill and even had a meeting with them in May after turning to my local MP Adam Dance for help but unfortunately I don’t feel that GWR are listening to me or are being proactive in resolving the issues raised.

I would like to ask the people of Yeovil to stand with me and sign this petition to ask GWR to do the following:

1. Please increase the number of permanent staff working at Yeovil Pen Mill station so there are not just two staff employed by GWR to work at the station (who work separate shifts)
2. Please ensure Yeovil Pen Mill Station is  always staffed it’s scheduled staffing hours and when the permanent staff are  not available to staff it (eg due to holidays and illness) cover staff are provided and the station is not left unstaffed. According to the National Rail website the scheduled staffing hours for Yeovil Pen Mill station are Monday - Friday 07:20 to 18:25, Saturday 07:20 - 14:10 and Sunday 14:30- 17:00
3. Please employ a Manager for Yeovil Pen Mill station who is based on site or more locally than Westbury.

Before closing I feel in fairness to GWR I should state that at times in the past when I have wanted to travel but the station has been unstaffed due to short staffing they have provided taxis to/from the nearest staffed station so I could board/alight trains at a manned station. I’m grateful for this but I do not feel it is the long term answer. I just want my local station to be staffed!

i’m sorry this text is quite long but please people of Yeovil get signing and I really hope these issues can be resolved to the benefit of us all.

Thank you in advance to anyone who supports this.