• Ticket sales
• Book-keepers
• Guards and ticket inspectors
• Promotion and marketing
• Administration
• Station maintenance
• Café
• Gardening and planting
• Drivers

• Crossing keepers
• Controllers
• Painting and plumbing
• Track maintenance
• Depot maintenance
• Track patrollers
• Gift Shop
• Organising events

An update from Ian Gardner, W R Trust Chairman:

Many of you may be wondering what‘s happening with the sale of the ECT membership of the Railway. At the present time, the mechanisms of the sale are continuing. The other members, (the Trust, DCC & WVDC), have this week met again with the president of the company interested in purchasing ECT’s rail division. This was followed by a visit to Stanhope Station as well as other places on the line. All in all it was once again a very positive visit.
Whilst I cannot say for certain when the sale process will be completed, we are hopeful that this will happen sometime during the summer months.
Hopefully, the next time I am able to give further information, it will be to say the sale has been completed.

 The boiler and fire box for the Trust’s locomotive, number 40, will be under going testing at Tyseley works in the next week or so. Once the tests are completed to the satisfaction of our insurance inspectors, the boiler assembly will be returning to Weardale where it will be re-fitted on to its chassis. The intention is to have the loco available for service before the Santa specials.
Funds are still being raised to allow the work to continue.

 On a different note, the Railway recently played host to the children from Cockton Hill Infants School in Bishop Auckland. The whole school visited the railway over a period of two days and had a most enjoyable time. Many thanks for the pictures we have received from the school some of which will soon be on display at Stanhope Station. In a similar vane, overall visitor numbers are well ahead for the same period as last year with a steady stream of coach parties visiting the railway. Alongside these, the events held so far this year have also gone well, all though the most resent event, a classic car show, was held on a very wet weekend, the event still  went well and many of those taking part expressing a wish to hold the event again next year, (hopefully with more luck with the weather). 

The next event is our 1940’s WAR ON THE LINE, this is taking place on the first weekend in August. A 1940’s dance is being held on the Saturday evening with tickets on sale now priced at £5. Events and displays will be taking place throughout the weekend. 

And finally, so they say. It may seem like Christmas is still a long way away, but tickets are now on sale for the Santa Specials. Booking forms are available from the Station at Stanhope. A downloadable form is available in the timetables section. We also run mid-week specials for schools or children’s groups so if you have young children attending school or nursery, why not mention it.

 Bets regards

Ian Gardner

Chairman, Weardale Railway Trust

Sponsored Walk - Saturday 19th July 2008 in support of the No 40 Appeal

The Weardale Railway Trust owned 0-6-0 locomotive No 40, an ex-NCB passenger tank engine built in 1954, is currently undergoing repairs to part of the inner firebox at the Midland Locomotive Works in Tylesley. These repairs and the subsequent reassembly, testing and recertification of the locomotive are targeted to be completed by late Summer 2008.

The total cost including transport back to Weardale and reassembly etc is going to be in the order of £48,000. The WR Trust has already raised £28,000 from its own resources and from the amount already raised from the members through the No 40 Appeal. But that still leaves a gap of £16,500.

The Junior Club will be holding a sponsored walk from Stanhope to Wolsingham on Saturday 19th July 2008 with all proceeds going straight into the No 40 Appeal.

So how can you help?
Sponsor the team - if you would like to sponsor the team please email us on admin@wrjc.org.uk with your name, address, telephone number and email address. You will be emailed a sponsorship form along with full information.

Join us - why not come along and take part? 
If you are a Trust member and would like to get involved, please register by emailing your details to admin@wrjc.org.uk

Provisional Event Information:-

• Walkers register at Stanhope Station at 11am to be issued with map, route details and checkpoint card (This will allow walkers to travel on the 1030  Wolsingham to Stanhope service, or alternatively, walkers could start at Stanhope and return back on one of our scheduled train services).
• Walk is from Stanhope Station to Wolsingham Station, a distance of 5.5 miles.  2.5 - 3 hours should be allowed for the walk.
• Checkpoints will be at Frosterley, Broadwood and Holbeck.
• Walkers will be able to return to Stanhope by train - services depart Wolsingham at 13:00 and 15:30 free of charge upon production of their validated checkpoint card.

Thanks,

David Million (Director)
Volunteer Liaison Officer & Junior Club Training Coordinator
Weardale Railway Trust

Update on Weardale Railway CIC 

As many of you will be aware from my notes in the latest edition of the Between the Lines magazine and previous postings on this site, the sale of the ECT rail division continues.
In recent weeks, potential purchasers have visited the railway as well as Dartmoor Railway and the RMS Locotec facility in Wakefield.  Since then discussions between the respective parties have continued.

A meeting was held last week between representatives from the prospective buyer and the other members of Weardale Railway CIC. The discussions during the meeting were very positive and all present were favourable to the possible sale. Over the following days meetings also took place at Dartmoor and at Locotec with those present also being favourable to the plans and statements from the potential buyer. 

Since that meeting, it has been announced, that the recycling division of ECT has been sold to the May Gurney company, (see ECT website or the May Gurney website for further information.) 

As stated on ECT’s website the sale of the rail division is still underway and I will pass on further information in due course. 

Best regards

Ian Gardner, Chairman Weardale Railway Trust

Mothers Day - part 2:

The above photograph shows a family group of four generations of a family from Newton Aycliffe:-
L-R Peggy Raw, Barbara Hendry, Meiling Glendenning with her daughters Chantelle 13yrs and Lillie-Mei 18months.

Gerry Mudd

Easter Weekend, March 21 - 24: Lots going on - download a poster or flyers giving details of events. Better still, print a few and help promote our events! Even better still - come along and help as a volunteer (email weardale.railway@tiscali.co.uk  for more info.)
Download posters / flyers here.

Wolsingham Station Building – Progress Report

Work is progressing steadily with this volunteer Trust led Project under the supervision of Dave Briggs the Company Project Manager.
 As can be seen from the picture below the canopy timberwork is complete and the roof cover has been finished.

Some paintwork remains to be done and then the external stone cladding will be attached to complete the external works. Target date is the end of March, followed by interior fitting out and a planned opening in April.
We are grateful for the financial support for this project from the Banks Community Fund via the County Durham Foundation.
Gerry Mudd

Mothers Day report:
This years programme of special events got off to a good start on Sunday 2nd March. The Class 73 was the motive power hauling two coaches plus the Griddle Car and the trains were filled with mums (and grandmums) and their families - many of whom enjoyed the facility of having cream teas in the buffet car en route, served by Kath Wood with Joan Carrick and Steve Raine supporting.
The Stanhope Station down platform waiting room a.k.a the Education Room was opened for children to make their own special Mothers Day Cards.

Overall a very successful and busy day for the Railway. Customer comment forms were handed out and the feed back was uniformly positive.  Eg: What was the best part of your trip ? “ From when we got on until when we got off”.
Photos taken on the day, courtesy of John Askwith.
Gerry Mudd

UPDATE ON NO 40:
Last week the rolling frame was returned from Crewe Works after wheel turning. Thanks to David Wright and Trevor Hewitt for arranging this and to the Depot crew under Graham Lord for handling the despatch and arrival (seen below) via the temporary siding at Wolsingham.
Meanwhile work continues on the repairs to the inner firebox at the Tylesley Works in the Midlands . These repairs are scheduled for completion in June and after re-assembly, test running and training we expect to have the Loco operational for the summer school holiday period.

Gerry Mudd

Junior Club Update.

Young railway enthusiasts may be interested to know that the Weardale Railway Trust’s Junior Club is now firmly established with 9 members aged 11, 12 and 13.

The Junior Club (better known as WRjc) is open to young people aged from 11 to 15 inclusive. To join applicants must first become a member of the Trust for which an annual membership fee is payable, however, there is no further charge to join the WRjc.

WRjc offers members a weekly training programme covering railway related subjects and group visits to other railways and special events.  Members also benefit to travel concessions on the Weardale Railway.

The WRjc meets on Friday evenings at Stanhope Station where members learn about railway operations, both on the Weardale Railway and the national network and also about the history of the line.

In addition to the weekly training sessions a number of visits are planned for 2008 including:- National Railway Museum York & Shildon, York station, Darlington station, Tanfield Railway, Wensleydale Railway and the North Yorkshire Moors Railway.

The current training program covers, The Rule Book, Personal Track Safety, history of the Weardale Railway, Standard Operating Procedures, rolling stock, roles within the Weardale Railway, diversity and the national network including geography, train companies and rolling stock.

During December 2007, 4 members successfully passed their Personal Track Safety Assessment and have since received their Certificates of Achievement.

At the moment, WRjc members are unable to perform any work on the operational railway, however, it is hoped that this situation will change during early 2008 when the new company Rule Book is introduced. Once the new Rule Book is in place it is expected that WRjc members will have the opportunity to work alongside adult volunteers in a number of roles.

WRjc members are currently allowed to help with certain tasks that take place away from the operational railway, such as assisting at stands promoting the railway and other marketing initiatives.

Junior Club members have been invited along to the Weardale Railway Loco Preservation Group's model railway exhibition to assist at the event and to promote the WRjc and the Weardale Railway.  This event takes place at Spennymoor Town Hall on 10th & 11th May 2008.

To apply to join or to find out more about WRjc please visit our website www.wrjc.org.uk or email us at weardale.railway@tiscali.co.uk

David Million

No 40 Appeal:

We could have No.40 working in steam this summer! Read Gerry's appeal in the general news here or go straight to the donation form here.

Wolsingham Station Building – Progress Report

It is over a month since the last update, so here is a photograph (courtesy of David Scott one of the volunteer team ).

  The fact that the roof structure was complete before the Santa special season was a real benefit for our passengers on those days when shelter was needed. Note the use of old lamp standards as the canopy supports. 
So there now remains the slates for the roof covering and the brick cladding to be completed – both have been ordered, although the rising cost of materials is putting at the limits of the generous grant from the Banks Community Fund through the County Durham Foundation. We hope to have the building ready for the Easter season.
Then there remains the fitting out of the interior. Do  any of our supporters  know of any suitable equipment which may be surplus to requirements? We will need counter space, shelves, display racks, display for a small food/ drinks selection etc. If you have any ideas please email me at gcmudd@ntlworld.com

Santa Success!

And now for something completely different:

You are cordially invited to attend the Weardale Railway Trust annual work your Christmas pud off day on Friday 28th December 2007. It is an opportunity to work off a little bit of that Christmas over indulgence and also help the railway at the same time.
Prospective volunteers are encouraged to assemble at Stanhope Station from 9.30am for a day of friendly banter and light duties. A soup kitchen kindly provided by Kath Wood as a further enticement will be available on site. (hope it is not turkey!)  

If you could make yourself available, it would be much appreciated. If you cant but know someone who could, please pass the message on. (Day membership of the Trust is available to non members).

Merry Christmas and best wishes for a prosperous New Year,
from all at the Weardale Railway.

If you are under 15, or know any youngsters keen to become involved with the railway you will be interested to know that the Junior Club is now firmly established and now has its own website. Please visit www.wrjc.org.uk for more info. 

WORK CONTINUES AT WOLSINGHAM

The team of volunteers working with Project Manager Dave Briggs are continuing to make good progress on the passenger accommodation building  project at Wolsingham. It is hoped to have the building partly usable during the Santa Special running period in December.

 The photos (by David Scott) show the status as of the Wednesday 21^st November.

Santa Specials: Many runs are now totally sold out (see Timetables section for details). There is now an urgent need for volunteers to help fill the rosters for this part of the running season. If you are able to help out at all, please contact Kevin at weardale.railway@tiscali.co.uk
 

ALL RUN ROUND AT WOLSINGHAM

Saturday the 4th November saw work start at Wolsingham’s Weardale Railway Station with the destruction of the original down platform wall to make way for a new track bed ready to be installed early 2008. This work is a major stepping stone for the Weardale Railway showing that progression is key, now that the railway is out of administration. The run round loop will remove the need to use a shunter when running locomotive hauled stock as at present the train has to travel to the depot for the shunter to assist the locomotive changing ends, as at Stanhope Station this will mean the coaches can stay at the platform while the locomotive changes ends allowing passengers to stay in their seats or to join the train and get comfortable ready for the journey. 

Looking at the long term this work will allow us to rebuild the down platform in the correct location ready for use when we start running to Bishop Auckland using more than one train. A number of original items were found in the ground including the signalman’s platform where he would stand to hand the single line token over to the train driver of the.

Thinking using a JCB to dig the ground away would be easy was a very foolish thing, as the wall is roughly 160yrs old you wouldn’t think the build quality would be very good However, the foundations are better quality than some of today’s modern houses. The actual platform looked to be built from old landfill and bricks but this was only hiding what was behind. As a JCB operator I have never seen such large chunks of solid slate as where hidden under the bricks, but determination broke it away quite easily. More work will continue over the next few months to have everything ready for 2008.

The Weardale Railway Trust would like to thank Anthony Stewart plant hire of Rushyford (my boss) for the use of the JCB as without it the work would not be possible. The Weardale Railway is still looking for willing volunteers so anyone interested please contact the volunteer team on weardale.railway@tiscali.co.uk

Kevin Garthwaite
Volunteer Liaison Officer
 

Gerry's Jottings:

 Wolsingham Depot : Power Supply

 One of the problems which has beset working in the Depot has been the lack of a mains power supply. A substation was built in 2004 but was never connected because of the cash flow problems at that time.
We have been reliant on a small generator which enabled some operations to continue however there was not enough power to provide, for example, lighting to work during the hours of darkness.

Last Friday , 1st November, NEDL connected up the substation so we now, at last have mains power. Some circuit work needs to be completed to connect up the whole of the depot to this supply.

Gerry's Jottings:

 Loco No. 40 

We still await approval from the Trust’s own insurers to the proposed repairs to the lower part of the inner firebox. Once we have this and the final cost, repairs can begin. The work, once commissioned, is estimated to take 8 weeks. So if the Trust can meet the cost of repairs the Loco could be back in action for next Easter. Do contribute to the Loco Fund if you can – details below in the September 28 update.

 Wolsingham station Building 

Work has been delayed due to the vandalism incidents previously mentioned. Discussions have been held with the Police on this problem which also affects Frosterley and to lesser extent Stanhope stations. This has resulted in a plan to utilise CCTV which we hope to install soon. Meanwhile work has commenced on the main roof timbers over the Portacabin to which we will be attached a canopy and finally the cabin will be cladded. It is hoped to have part of the building ready to use for the Santa specials season – although this is weather and volunteer time dependent. Below is a progress photograph from David Scott, one of the volunteers. 

Photo : David Scott “Not very pretty… YET”      Watch this space!

  Other News

 Work on the new fencing alongside and adjacent to the line at the Kingfisher Caravan Park was completed last week. This work has kept a volunteer gang busy since early this year and has involved the repair and replacement of one and a quarter miles of fencing. Other fencing and level crossing repair work has also been carried at other locations up to Eastgate and down towards Bishop Auckland.

The Class 73 has been operating at weekends on occasion and driver training sessions have been held during the week.

Santa specials are booking well , some trains are already full and some special extras are being timetabled. It you haven’t booked yet, better hurry.

Trains will also run between Boxing Day and  New Years Day, there are still some volunteer slots to fill on these days, so please help if you can.

Trust volunteers - now have their own page regularly updated by the volunteer coordinators, Kevin Garthwaite and David Million.
You will find its link on the Groups page.

Gerry's Jottings:

 Locomotives and Rolling Stock

No 40:
As mentioned earlier the Boiler and firebox of the Trust owned 0-6-0 tank engine is now at Tylesley Locomotive Works. The initial inspection indicates that the repairs required may be somewhat less onerous than some of us feared.  It could be that only the lower part of the inner firebox requires replacement, if their qualified boiler inspector confirms this assessment and our own inspector also approves the work, could be that we can have no 40 back in running order sooner than expected.
But it will still need funds to complete the work. The No 40 Fund was launched in the last magazine and is progressing steadily, please contribute if you can.

 THE No. 40 APPEAL
Any contribution, no matter how small will be welcome and don’t forget the Trust is eligible to receive money given as Gift Aid, so please give as generously as you can by sending your donations to:-

The No 40 Appeal, Weardale Railway Trust, Stanhope Station, STANHOPE, Bishop Auckland, Co Durham, DL13 2YS 

All gifts over £10 will be acknowledged and the donor will receive a colour print of the loco in action in Weardale, plus if you give an email address updates on the progress of the restoration. 

For gifts over £100 you will receive the above benefit plus recognition as a premium donor in the Trust magazine  ‘Between the Lines’ 

For gifts over £500 you will receive the above benefits, recognised as a Silver donor and receive a voucher redeemable against a footplate ride on No 40.

 For gifts over £1000 you will receive all the above benefits plus a linepass valid for one year allowing free travel on the railway for yourself and three accompanying passengers.

 Don’t forget if you are a higher rate taxpayer you can claim a tax rebate for any contribution made under Gift Aid.

Arrivals and Departures
A second of the original four Class 37 locos stationed at the Wolsingham Depot, Number 37275, was moved to a private owner in the Midlands last week. Arriving the same day was a Class 56 locomotive, number 56022, it is an ECT Mainline owned Loco, not in working order and is being stored.

Volunteers Day
The Volunteers day held on the 15^th September.  Over 50 attendees were registered to ride on the ‘Special’ train to a temporary platform in the Depot where they were shown over the equipment and rolling stock and in the yard and the Main shed, the Gun shed however needs repair before it is a safe working environment so it was not on the itinerary on this occasion. Back to Stanhope for Ale and a barbeque and the good news is that 20 + new Trust volunteer applications were received. Congratulations and thanks to Kevin Garthwaite who organised the day and to all those who turned out to help.

Vandalism
The railway has been subjected to periodic minor vandalism and graffiti from time to time, but the last few weeks have seen an escalation to a more serious level. The two portaloos at Wolsingham station were set alight and completely destroyed in the small hours of 16^th of September, the fire also burned the adjoining fence and caused damage to the neighbouring property. One consequence of this is that we have had to suspend work on the station building and canopy on the nearby platform until we can arrange more security.
At the same time, at Stanhope station all of the fine looking flower baskets along the platform canopy were trashed and thrown on the line. There has also been persistent damage and theft of fencing material at Frosterley station.
This kind of vandalism, and worse seems to a too frequent occurrence on several other Heritage railways and even the ECML suffers from cable theft. However it does mean we are going to have to divert more resource from restoration work to increase security.

 Trackwork etc
Work continues on the fencing at the Kingfisher Caravan site which is now in its final stages, work has been delayed by other essential work on level crossing maintenance and on fencing problems at various points up and down the line all the way to Bishop Auckland. When you take over 18 miles of railway you also take over 36 miles of fencing, on which little or no work has been done since the railway closed in 1993. Future plans include restoration of the crossing gates at Witton le Wear so that clearance/ repair work can commence from there initially towards Wear Valley Junction.

Reminder 1 - Santa Special places are selling fast. If you, or any of your friends, are intending to bring children, grandchildren, nephews, nieces, etc. on a trip you will need to book soon, especially if you want a particular day.
A booking form can be downloaded from the "Timetables" page.

Reminder 2 - Come along to Stanhope Station (and bring any potential volunteers with you!) to the Community Barbecue & Volunteer Open Day, 15th September 2 - 5:30pm. It includes a depot visit departing Stanhope at 2:15, returning 3:55. Please note however that numbers are limited for this visit. It is recommended that you pre-book your tickets in advance by registering via Stanhope Station.

Gerry's Jottings:

 EASTGATE NEWS

The Eastgate Team ( Lafarge, One North East, DCC, WVDC) recently released  an update on the Project. You can see it here :  http://www.weardale-works.co.uk/   and by then clicking on the first item in the  ‘Latest News’ section.
A WR representative sits on the Team meetings, so here are some observations on the implications for WR. to bring our Supporters up to date on current thinking.
First there is mention of some reduction in the  size of the WR facility (station etc) within the site. Actually the main issue is not so much size as the length of penetration into the site from where our lines crosses over the Rookhope Burn to enter the site. There is pressure on space utilisation due to the changing requirements of the modified energy generation mix now envisaged ( as described in the release).
From the WR point of view the main requirement is to ensure that any station can handle full length charter trains from the network – an important means of delivering some of the 65,000 rail-borne visitors envisaged in the release. This looks possible while still fitting in with our other partners on the site.
The other issue for WR is one of timing of utilising Eastgate in relation to moving down to Bishop Auckland.  There is an interesting comment in the final sentence of the release :- 

“ Regeneration projects on this scale can take more than a decade to complete due to their complexity. As an example, Bluewater shopping and leisure development in Kent, also on the site of a former cement works and quarry, took over 11 years from concept to completion “

Eastgate conceptual design started in the 2003/4 timeframe. Taking the above into account and recognising the planning submission and approvals implicit in a project lying within an AONB ( most certainly not the case in Bluewater) then we have to accept that fare paying passengers to Eastgate development in any number, are possibly still a number of years away.
The only other possibility would be a service to an observation area cum picnic site to watch the Project taking shape – as was done with the Eden Project – this is on the table as an option.

So the priorities as we see them now are :-

 1) Strengthen and expand and improve the economic performance and passenger appeal of the service between Stanhope and Wolsingham.

 2) Open the line down to Bishop Auckland, at first maybe just sufficiently to simplify stock movements  and then develop progressively the infrastructure  and begin a passenger service.

3) Work with the Eastgate Project to introduce services, possibly initially to a temporary station – timing the main station to coincide with the Project opening and completion of 2) above.

I emphasise this represents current thinking only – there are several other factors which could impact on these priorities, which are not necessarily sequential, but will to a degree overlap.

Gerry's Jottings:

No 40 :  Update 

The boiler and firebox were loaded and transported to the works at Tylesley Locomotive Works last week. We hope to hear the results of a closer examination of the boiler and firebox once the dismantling is completed within the next few weeks.
We anticipate that a full restoration may cost over well over £30,000.
The loco was purchased with a grant from the Northern Rock Foundation and by a gift from a Trust member, supplemented by amounts from the Trust’s own resources, namely from Trust members.
We are examining external sources of funding to help with restoring the loco to duty on the line and are hopeful of obtaining significant amounts, but whatever we obtain will have to be matched by a contribution from the Trust.

 No 40 : An Appeal to all Supporters

An appeal fund was launched in the last Trust Magazine, and the response so far has been very good, however there is still a long way to go, so we are repeating the  appeal here.
Any contribution, no matter how small will be welcome and don’t forget the Trust is eligible to receive money given as Gift Aid, so please give as generously as you can  by sending your donations to :- 

The No 40 APPEAL
Weardale Railway Trust
Stanhope Station
Stanhope, Bishop Auckland
Co. Durham, DL13 2YS 

All gifts over £10 will be acknowledged and the donor will receive a colour print of the loco in action in Weardale, plus if you give an email address updates on the progress of the restoration.

For gifts over £100 you will receive the above benefit plus recognition as a premium donor in the Trust magazine  ‘Between the Lines’.

For gifts over £500 you will receive the above benefits, recognised a Silver donor and receive a voucher redeemable against a footplate ride on No 40.

For gifts over £1000 you will receive all the above benefits plus a Gold Pass valid for one year allowing free travel on the Weardale Railway for yourself and three accompanying passengers. 

Don’t forget if you are a higher rate taxpayer you can claim a tax rebate for any contribution made under Gift Aid. 

Wolsingham Station  : Waiting Room and Ticket Office 

Work has now started on the much-needed station building on the platform at Wolsingham Station. Dave Briggs has designed the building and will manage the project, but it will need many hours of volunteer work to complete. So thanks first to the existing volunteer team who have promised to help: John Wardell, John Yarker, Chris Briggs, Trevor Hewitt and Steve Proud.
Further volunteers will be welcome on this and several other ongoing projects. Contact Dave Briggs on 07918 777 934. NOTE:  for insurance purpose you must be a member of the Trust (Application form downloadable from this site.)
Thanks are due to the County Durham Foundation and to the Banks Community Fund for their financial assistance towards the materials cost of this project.

If you have any queries or would like further information drop an email to me at  gcmudd@ntlworld.com and I will try to answer them in subsequent updates.