- CASE STUDIES -

Operation Parkside, Collaborative Safeguarding Assessment

November 10, 2025

Rowena Tyler

Concept and aims

Operation Parkside launched in 2024 as a multi-agency response to incidents of youth disorder on the West Coastway line. The project was borne out of a shared ambition to deter antisocial behaviour while reclaiming stations as safe, welcoming, and community focused spaces. A strategic partnership with SCRP has been central to this work, enabling proactive and positive engagement with the rail sector, passengers, local businesses and communities. We have delivered a range of initiatives across West Sussex including station beautification projects, station adoption by a local youth organisation, a community music event and the joint Your Community Cares knitted hearts campaign.

 

 

What happened

A contextual safeguarding assessment of stations and surrounding areas throughout West Sussex was undertaken in May, 2025 at the request of West Sussex Council and working in partnership with GTR (Southern) and other key partners from the local area.

The assessment consisted of:

  • Initial briefing
  • Assessment outside the station
  • Interaction with staff
  • Picture-taking as evidence
  • Walking the route around the surrounding community (as detailed below)
  • Assessment inside stations and platforms
  • Physical tests of call points and support telephone numbers
  • Group discussion and Q&A
  • 360-degree community assessment around the surrounding community (as detailed below).

The assessment team was led by Joe Clay, Safeguarding Partnership Manager at Railway Children and supported by Claire Clilverd, Contextual Safeguarding Lead from West Sussex Council. The assessment was supported by Rail Industry Professionals, including police officers from British Transport Police (BTP) and GTR. The group also included numerous professionals from agencies across West Sussex. These include Social Care Professionals, Health Care Professionals, representatives from the Youth Offending Team, local youth outreach teams and Sussex Police.

Rowena Tyler, SCRP Community Development Officer for the Arun Valley Line, accompanied the station visits at the 4 stations on the Arun Valley Line which were included in the report.  These were Horsham, Littlehaven, Ifield and Three Bridges.

Results

Information gathered from the assessment visits was collated and published in a report owned by the Railway Children’s Charity.  The West Sussex Strategic Partnership Board endorsed the findings and recommendations in the report.

 

 

During the following quarter (December 2025)  several initiatives were set in motion or achieved including: :

 

  • Uniform lists of every West Sussex maintained school collated and shared with GTR along with reporting guidance so station staff can easily identify and flag concerns relating to school aged children who may be vulnerable or causing issues on the network
  • Crawley Community Youth Service in the process of adopting Ifield station as a station partner
  • 5th Burgess Hill Scouts expressed interest in potential station partnership / working together at Wivelsfield Station
  • Information sharing agreements now in place between WSCC and GTR and agreement confirmed to share Zero Harm
  • Collaborative working alliance between WSCC Community Safety and the Southeast Communities Rail Partnership.
  • Follow up contextual neighbourhood and location assessments have taken place at other stations and key locations across West Sussex, taking learning from the station assessments; many led or facilitated by Early Help with consultation and support from WSCC CSWB/Contextual Safeguarding Champions Network.
  • Community Engagement events scheduled to take place at stations across West Sussex to coincide with White Ribbon Day and Christmas, including Your Community Cares woollen heart campaign and a carol concert around the Bognor station community piano to coincide with the Bognor Christmas Illumination switch on.
  • Graffiti removal and community art installations planned for a number of stations across the county.

Impact

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We have delivered a range of joint initiatives across West Sussex including • station beautification projects, • station adoption by a local youth organisation, • a community music event • and the joint Your Community Cares knitted hearts campaign.

“Working closely with SCRP and its line officers over the past two years has been a genuinely positive experience. Through this collaboration, we have been able to deliver meaningful rail-based projects and build strong partnerships across the sector that are making a real difference to local communities”

Claire Clilverd, Contextual Safeguarding Officer, West Sussex County Council (WSCC)
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