Broadcaster Tim Dunn unveils new LNER London King's Cross 'Family Lounge'

Broadcaster and rail historian, Tim Dunn has helped LNER unveil the new, and very different, attraction at London King's Cross.

The new "Family Lounge" will welcome families travelling up and down the East Coast Mainline with a whole host of entertainment and activities on offer.

Read more: LNER sees Durham, Darlington and Yorkshire passengers return after Covid

Located on the main concourse near the Travel Centre, the lounge has its very own seating area, beach huts with table-top games, a soft play area and a Hornby train set.

Broadcaster and railway historian Tim Dunn adds the finishing touches to a Hornby model train set fe (Image: Broadcaster and railway historian Tim Dunn adds the finishing touches to a Hornby model train set fe)

Jeremiah and Isabelle Opoku, age 6 from London, explores the new Family Lounge, with their mum Ekua Opoku Picture: LNER (Image: LNER)

It also features its own "Heritage Wall" with rail items that have been donated by the National Railway Museum in York to keep children enthused.

Meanwhile, video content from LNER's 'In the driver's seat' series will give parents and children a glimpse of what it is like to drive the Azuma train.

It comes as the Travel Centre at King's Cross has also been refurbished, with a moss wall now separating the two areas, and now a more comfortable breastfeeding space.

Abu Siddeeq, Head of Customer Service at LNER, said: “As a father with young children, I know first- hand how much I appreciate it when businesses are truly family friendly.

Holly, age 5, and Miles Trainor-McFerran, age 10, at the new London North Eastern Railway (LNER) Family Lounge at King’s Cross Station Picture: LNER (Image: LNER)

Picture: LNER (Image: Picture: LNER)

"That is why I’m delighted that LNER will be opening the Family Lounge at London King’s Cross, the first dedicated lounge for families on the UK rail network.”

“From having a safe space to play to being able to sit together as a family whilst taking a break from travelling, the Family Lounge has been specially designed with families of all ages in mind and is bound to make a huge difference to those using the station.”

"To ensure the Family Lounge is of benefit to families, LNER consulted with the Campaign For Family Friendly Trains, a group of parents and carers working for better facilities for children and their families on the UK rail network.

According to LNER, the new facility has been designed to welcome more families who choose to travel by train and is in addition to exisiting facilities at King's Cross.

Holly, age 5, and Miles Trainor-McFerran, age 10, at the new London North Eastern Railway (LNER) Fam (Image: Holly, age 5, and Miles Trainor-McFerran, age 10, at the new London North Eastern Railway (LNER) Fam)

That follows a survey recently conducted by Mumsnet, which revealed that easy travel experience is important to 93 per cent of people when planning a day trip.

Nick Flynn from the Campaign for Family Friendly Trains, said: "The Family Lounge at King’s Cross Station will be a fantastic way for families to pass the time before their train departs and is an excellent step towards creating a more family-friendly railway.

“We welcome LNER’s significant effort in creating this space and were delighted to be consulted at the design stage.

"We hope the concept will be reproduced at stations across the country and encourage the rail industry to continue to think about the needs of families onboard such as dedicated spaces for prams and at stations.”

Picture: LNER (Image: Picture: LNER)

The Family Lounge is not just exclusively for LNER passengers - it will open to those travelling with all train companies from London King’s Cross.

Helen Cavanagh, Head of Passenger Experience for Network Rail’s East Coast Route, said: “We’ve worked really closely with LNER on this project, so we’re delighted that the Family Lounge will soon be available for use.

“Over the past few years, we’ve been working hard to improve King’s Cross station for our customers, with work to refurbish toilets and install new seating on the concourse just some of the ways we have done that."

The lounge will officially open on Wednesday, October 12.

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