A historic railway in West London has been given a £25,000 grant to build a new shed that would provide housing for a 1903 locomotive as well as valuable space for maintenance work.
The project comes as part of a £1.8 million funding scheme to restore the Hampton Kempton Waterworks Railway (HKWR); this ran from the River Thames at Hampton to Kempton Waterworks pumping station, which played a vital part in supplying clean drinking water to London in the early 20th century.
HKWR chairman Michael Hamilton (
www.hamptonkemptonrailway.org.uk) said: “We are delighted that Heathrow Community Trust (HCT) has granted this award, which will make such a difference to the volunteers maintaining and restoring our unique collection of heritage railway equipment.
“Being under cover will also enable more volunteers to be trained in heritage railway preservation and allow visitors to see our restoration plans in action.”
HCT director Rebecca Bowden said: “We are delighted to support this project through our Communities Together grant programme.
“We hope it will enable many more people — from the local area and further afield — to visit and see this hidden gem, which exists thanks to the hard work of so many volunteers.”