Rail minister Norman Baker has given the thumbs up to a £5.5 million upgrade of Earlsfield station in south London.

The revamp - which began in 2011 - has been completed and the station now boasts a new ticket hall, lifts and staircases.

This is one of hundreds of stations across the UK to benefit from a government-backed scheme such as Access for All and National Station Improvement Programme (NSIP).

Access for All will provide £370 million for 150 priority railway stations by 2015 and more than 1,000 facilities have already received grants.

The NSIP will see £150 million dished out to participating stations over a five-year period.

"Our research clearly shows that passenger satisfaction with stations increases when the money invested in improvements is targeted at the things that matter most to passengers," commented Passenger Focus chief executive Anthony Smith.

This comes shortly after Network Rail announced that a team of masterplanners have been called in to come up with ideas for a major overhaul of Oxford rail station.