Express & Star

Severn Valley Railway races ahead and hits viaduct fundraising target

The Severn Valley Railway has hit its £397,000 target to repair a viaduct.

Published
The viaduct

The railway launched its Falling Sands Viaduct appeal to raise money for match funding as part of a bid to the National Lottery Heritage Fund for a further £1 million.

The 142-year-old viaduct urgently needs extensive repairs. Water has seeped into the structure, causing it to crack and erode. Unless the railway carries out remedial work, it may be forced to reduce the length of trains, or even face temporary or permanent closure of the line.

As well as repairing the viaduct, a new exhibition could be set up at the Engine House in Highley.

Shelagh Paterson, director of development at the railway, thanked everybody who had donated.

Amazing

She said: “The appeal name of ‘helping hands for Falling Sands’ summed up the spirit of everybody pitching in to do their bit, and that’s exactly what’s happened. We knew we’d attract a great deal of interest and support, but we really didn’t expect the amazing response we have had. Our original fundraising target was £275,000. As last Christmas approached, this had increased to £397,000. However, thanks to the thousands of people who’ve responded we have raised our target amount in just 10 months.

“The process of checking and putting in order each of the thousands of names is now under way, and we’ll be working with our designer and manufacturer to create a stunning wall that we can all be proud of. We haven’t got an exact date for its installation at The Engine House, Highley, but it’s planned for the current running season.”

Support​

The trust needed to raise £397,000 as match funding in support of a bid to the National Lottery Heritage Fund for a further £1 million. Competition for funding is very strong, and the trust expects to receive a decision from the Heritage Fund later this month.

Shelagh said: “If the full funding amount is secured, we will press ahead in June to create the exhibition and education parts of the project., through which we will bring alive the history of the railway from its earliest days, and the original construction of Falling Sands during the 1870s.”

“We will create an innovative mobile exhibition in our recently restored Stove R van, and an exciting, major installation at The Engine House, Highley.

“The restoration part of the project will begin early in January 2020. Contractors will remove the track, ballast and sandstone rubble from the viaduct. They’ll install efficient drainage channels and add a modern, waterproof membrane, before putting everything back together. Once the structure has properly dried out, damaged bricks will be replaced and the mortar repointed. We hope that the entire restoration will be completed by autumn 2020.”