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THE Ffestiniog & Welsh Highland Railways is celebrating a second major boost of the year – in the form of a £3,144,000 grant from The National Lottery Heritage Fund.
The award will largely finance the line's Interpretation and Boston Lodge Works project and boost plans to attract more visitors by providing “a high-quality tourism experience” – along with fresh work, training and volunteering opportunities for the community of Porthmadog.
It will also fund the restoration and conservation of historic buildings, including the works listed by the Guinness Book of Records as the oldest railway workshop in continuous operation.
Supporters will be providing an additional £900,000 of matched funding for the three-and-a-halfyear project which, once complete, aims to attract up to 250,000 visitors each year.
History recorded
The grant comes hard on the heels of the Ff&WHR and the Talyllyn becoming a major part of the new slate landscape of the North Wales UNESCO World Heritage Site, with the increased potential to become significant international visitor destinations, as first reported in issue 283.
Ff&WHR general manager Paul Lewin said: “We can feel our history slipping through our fingers – we must act now to save that history.
“We are a Welsh railway and our history is intertwined for 200 years with the local community.
“We want to build on those existing links so that the local community will have pride in and be involved in the heritage of the Ff&WHR and Boston Lodge.
“Through our project, we want to capture our stories and make sure they're shared with future generations and that we continue to play our part in the economy and success of North Wales.
Economic benefits
“Our railway has survived by adapting and embracing technology and thanks to this investment from The National Lottery Heritage Fund, we will do that again now to make sure that we offer a high quality tourism experience that brings real benefit to the North Wales economy.”
Refurbishment of the works buildings will allow visitors behind the scenes, also showing them opportunities to get involved as volunteers if they so wish.
Andrew White, director of The National Lottery Heritage Fund in Wales, said: “As well as the many economic and employment benefits of the Ff&WHR, this project, which centres on the Boston Lodge works, is a great example of how heritage can help us understand who we are and where we come from and how the communities we are part of have been shaped by the past by bringing history to life.”