over the line was widened to make room for a number of shops, including a supermarket which was originally Fine Fare and has subsequently had a number of occupiers, currently Poundland. In 2005 the station was refurbished with new shelters, seats, train indicators and rubbish bins by a consortium of local volunteers, work experience trainees provided by The Groundwork Trust and the local councils, with the active support of Network Rail and Central Trains (who managed the station at that time). In April 2012 a group called Transition Belper adopted the station with the help of the Derwent Valley Line Community Rail Partnership, East Midlands Trains, Network Rail and Belper Town Council. The Community Rail Partnership continues to care for the station. In 2009 an automatic ticket machine was installed on the Derby-bound platform, followed later by a second machine on the Matlock-bound side. These enable passengers to buy tickets (or collect those purchased in advance) before they board. In December 2009, Belper became a Penalty fare station. The penalty fare applies for any southbound travel and on northbound mainline services. The Ambergate to Matlock branch is not part of the penalty fare scheme. Where the local authority provides a discount, and if the vending machine is unable to issue discounted tickets, they can then be bought on the train. Stationmasters Mr. Brandon ca. 1860 Mr. Eden ca. 1861 ca. 1865 John Orton until 1874 Samuel Buxton 1875–1881 (formerly station master at Hassop) William Henry Buxton 1881–1896 (afterwards station master at Lincoln) Richard William Mapp ca. 1897–1901 (afterwards station master at Gloucester) Thomas Pitt 1901–1905 (afterwards station master at St Albans) Henry Merryweather 1905–1924 William Washbourne 1924–???? Arthur H. Washbourne ca. 1934 Henry Foster 1938–1947 Edmund T. Jackson 1947–1955 (formerly station master at Spondon) Services All services at Belper are operated by East Midlands Railway. On weekdays the station is served by one train per hour in each direction between and , with around half the services originating or ending in . Saturdays also have an hourly service but all the trains originate or end in Derby. There is also a single weekdays-only return service between and which is operated using a Class 222 Meridian. On Sundays, there is a two-hourly service between Matlock and Nottingham in the morning, with services increasing to hourly from mid-afternoon onwards. References Further reading Pixton, B., (2000) North Midland: Portrait of a Famous Route,