Heritage awards
ROBIN LELEUX, Chairman of the Panel of Adjudicators for the National Railway Heritage Awards, celebrates this year’s winning entries…
Keeping up appearances: RAIL profiles the winning entries and locations in this year’s National Railway Heritage Awards.
What a year this has been for us all. But despite initial fears surrounding the Coronavirus pandemic, and then the limitations imposed by the national response, a proper competition could still be held.
Some 42 entries were received from throughout the railway industry (albeit understandably fewer from the heritage railways this year), and
they were judged as usual by September.
Then the adjudicators met to review them and nominate the winners. plus the supporting short list of highly commended entries.
Normally, this is an all-day meeting in London, but this year we successfully resorted to using Zoom, which no doubt sharpened discussion!
The full presentation ceremony also had to be scrapped in its traditional form, to be replaced by a virtual one on December 2 when Network Rail Chief Executive Andrew Haines handed over virtual plaques.
It is intended that all winners will mount a full local plaque unveiling ceremony during 2021, when all this is over.
Here, RAIL presents this year‘s winning entries and locations.
Returning to northern England, we see two stations where in recent years most of the station building has been allowed to lie unused, but which have now been returned to the railway and potential commercial use.
At Morpeth, the driving force behind this was the Greater Morpeth Development Trust, with Northern, Network Rail and the Railway Heritage Trust all playing important roles. The station, in railway Tudor style, dates from
1847 and occupies a prominent elevated position. Considerable work to the roof and chimneys,
stonework, doors and windows now shows off this fine building.
Internally, a booking office has been created in one part of the large hall, while opposite lies a new cafe which it is hoped will have wider local appeal than for just the travelling public.
Rooms have been re-ordered to create small office accommodation for letting. Both town and railway now have a station of which they can be proud.