Funding secured for station's 'overdue' disabled access

Lifts would be installed as part of the £2m scheme

A "long overdue" scheme to provide disabled access to a railway station has secured government funding.

Billingham Station is the only one in the Tees Valley without such access, a situation Stockton Council said was "frankly unacceptable".

The £2m scheme to install new lifts will now receive government funding.

Paralympian Tanni Grey-Thompson said she was "delighted" that Billingham was looking at how it could improve access for everyone.

Stockton Council and the Tees Valley Combined Authority had previously pledged £1m, and a bid to the Government's Access for All programme, has also now been approved.

Councillor Mike Smith, Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council's cabinet member for environment and transport, said: "We've bid for this funding a number of times without success, which has been incredibly frustrating, so this breakthrough is welcome but it's long overdue.

"The bid is for £880,000 - we're still awaiting confirmation of exactly how much we'll get but obviously we hope it's enough to get on with delivering the scheme at long last."

Crossbench peer, Baroness Grey-Thompson, of Eaglescliffe in the County of Durham, said: "It's really important that everyone looks at accessibility.

"It's good that there is a lot of money to apply for.

"The railway network wasn't designed with access for all in mind, so I'd love to see a rolling programme for all stations."