2025 marks the 200th birthday of the Stockton & Darlington Railway and with it the start of the modern railway era which changed the face of the world. A major festival this year (www.SDR200.co.uk), will celebrate this in fine style alongside the wider Railway 200 celebrations happening across the country (www.railway200.co.uk), and now thanks to a grant of £238,000 from the National Lottery Heritage Fund, the future preservation of the Stockton & Darlington Railway is on the right track! The grant awarded to The Friends of the Stockton & Darlington Railway will allow the charity to build upon the bicentenary celebrations and secure the long-term legacy of this internationally important 26-mile-long heritage site.
With support from the three local authorities, Durham County Council, Darlington Borough Council and Stockton Borough Council, the grant will allow the charity to take a leading role in the future management of the Stockton & Darlington Railway ensuring it will continue to impact the region 200 years after its opening in 1825 heralded the second phase of the Industrial Revolution. This will build upon over a decade of voluntary efforts by members of the charity to maintain the line, research the line’s historical importance and to engage the local community with their rail heritage.
Work funded by the grant will include; the commissioning of a conservation management plan to inform the conservation of the unique heritage features along the line, access to the sites and the protection of wildlife habitats along the railway, the development of a business and fundraising plan to ensure long term sustainability of the Charity’s work, and to support and recruit the teams of volunteers looking after the line.
Niall Hammond, Chair of the Friends of the S&DR said:
“We are delighted by the support of the Heritage Fund and our good friends and partners at Durham, Darlington and Stockton Councils together with Historic England, which will allow us to build on a decade of voluntary and professional work.
The internationally significant heritage of the S&DR is something the people of North-East England are immensely proud of, and with this grant we can develop a fantastic partnership of volunteers, community and professionals to both safeguard its future and provide socio-economic and education benefits.”
The funding has also allowed the charity to begin the recruitment of a dedicated business development officer to support the existing volunteers and staff in developing the charity to take on this historic guardianship of the line.
