TOUGHING IT OUT? 60-PLUS RAILWAYS REFRAIN FROM APPEALS
For some railways, there’s no need to raise emergency cash – yet.
WE’RE NOT IN A POSITION WHERE WE NEED TO LAUNCH AN APPEAL YET
PHIL STANWAY, GCR(N)
More than 60 steam railways and preservation centres had yet to publicise a Covid-19 survival appeal as this issue went to press.
Several major lines were among those refraining from launching an appeal, including the Isle of Wight, Kent & East Sussex, Churnet Valley and Great Central railways.
Steve Backhouse, the Isle of Wight Steam Railway’s new general manager, told Steam Railway:
“We have cash in the bank and we think that we can ride it out. We’re conscious not to create panic among our members and supporters – we can get through this and survive to run again.
“That said, we’re planning some form of appeal towards the end of this year to help fund the ‘nice to do’ projects that will make next year special,” he added, referring to the 50th anniversary of the line’s first trains in 1971.
Almost all of the IoWSR’s paid employees (39 permanent and ten seasonal) have been furloughed, with only five looking after the site. “Some of them work part-time,” explained Mr Backhouse, “so it’s actually the equivalent of only 3.6 full-time employees.”
The Isle of Wight Railway Company’s annual financial report for the 2018 season showed “significant cash in the bank of £1.388m” with a total income of £1,985,255 (an increase on the 2017 figure of £1,938,585) and an overall surplus for that year of £22,669 after expenditure on running the railway.
KESR chairman Simon Marsh said: “Unlike some other heritage railways there is no imminent risk of our going under. The trustees will keep the position under review, but there are no current plans to launch a major coronavirusrelated appeal.” Although a link for donations can be found on the line’s website, he added, this is because “our supporters clearly wished to help us during the closure period and the prominent donation button is our response to that demand.
“We already have two major appeals running that we need to complete, and the heritage railway appeal market is going to be very crowded.”
These appeals are to overhaul ‘Terrier’ 0-6-0Ts Nos. 32670 and 32678 for the 150th anniversary of the class in 2022 (see separate story and pages 52-59) and the contract restoration of Mk 1 restaurant car No. 1987 at Eastleigh for the
KESR’s dining train.
Explaining why the Churnet Valley Railway had not launched an appeal, managing director Greg Wilson commented: “As a board, we don’t think it’s the right thing to do at all – we’re in a situation never seen in our lifetime, and at the moment, people are more concerned for their families.
“We’ve had a business interruption grant from the Government, and our electricity supplier has agreed to set the payments at £20 a month – everyone’s been more than helpful.”
Great Central Railway managing director Michael Gough commented: “We’re reviewing it on a weekly basis, but at the moment, we’re all right – and having just launched our ‘Bridge to the Future’ appeal, we don’t want to damage that too much.”
In a similar vein to the IoWSR and CVR, Simon Lomax, a trustee of the Moseley Railway Trust which runs the Apedale Valley Light Railway, said: “A lot of effort has gone into running the trust and the railway in a prudent and sustainable manner. Therefore, we have adequate reserves to avoid the need to launch an appeal in the short term. We believe that, at this time, there are causes even more deserving than heritage railways, and we encourage our membership to support them.”
Many smaller, all-volunteer operations, such as the Lincolnshire Wolds, Middleton and
Telford railways, and the Somerset & Dorset Railway Heritage Trust at Midsomer Norton, said that their lower overheads put them in a more secure financial position and reduced the need for appeals.
Mid-Suffolk Light Railway marketing manager John Reeve said: “The trustees have been assured that the museum could survive the loss of income from the whole 2020 summer programme if necessary. Nonetheless the strain on finances will be enormous, especially with the two major projects currently in hand, both essential for the continued development of the ‘Middy’.”
These are the overhaul of Hudswell Clarke 0-6-0ST Works No. 1604 for the 70th anniversary of the line’s closure in 2022, and the extension to Aspall Halt, for which appeals can be found on the line’s website at www.mslr.org.uk
Some centres have retained an income stream from contract work with main line operators, examples being the Barry Tourist Railway, Barrow Hill Roundhouse (which is storing and servicing High Speed Trains and Class 153 railcars for East Midlands Railway), and the GCR (Nottingham), which hosts incoming trains to the British Gypsum works at East Leake. “We’re not in a position where we need to launch an appeal yet,” said Phil Stanway, the GCR(N)’s commercial and communications manager, “though if this goes on much longer, we may have to.”
The Bo’ness & Kinneil Railway, and Scottish Railway Preservation Society, also foresee the need for funds, said SRPS chairman Jim Verth: “We are going to launch an appeal – it’s simply a matter of timing and focus.
“We are working on the assumption that we will make a significant operating loss this year and, as the pandemic develops, probably into next. The developing thinking on how we all move out of lockdown will also inform our approach. The timing of appeal(s) to the membership and beyond will depend on our financial modelling. We also want to take account of the implications for our Steaming Ahead Project, now on hold, and the additional cost that we will need to incur following Morayshire’s move from Llangollen [SR504].”