Help us run the railway
Everyone you see at the BWLR Open Days is a volunteer and behind the scenes there are many more.
Volunteers are the people who are restoring and maintaining the locomotives, coaches, wagons, signalling, track, buildings, exhibits and landscape.
Without the commitment of our volunteers we would not exist. Can you help? We would love to welcome you! There are great volunteering opportunities available that could teach you new skills, add to your circle of friends and above all provide fun.
There is always lots to do.
What could I do to help?
There’s a large range of skills needed to keep the railway running, you don’t have to limit yourself to just one area of interest – many of our team help in many different areas.
These are some of the areas
Operations
Drivers, Guards, Signalmen, Platform staff are all trained in-house with operating the train services to keep our visitors happy and on the move.
Locomotive Engineering
Steam & diesel locomotive maintenance and restoration in our fully equipped workshops
Carriage and Wagon Works
Five coaches and a fleet of wagons are maintained at the railway
Signal and Telecommunications
Provide and maintain our signals, signal boxes, point control rodding, telephone line and walkie talky radios.
Permanent Way
Ensuring our visitors experience a safe ride on the railway by maintaining the railway’s trackwork.
Lineside and buildings
Keep the railway grounds and buildings attractive and in good condition by maintaining the lineside, woodlands, fields and the many structures along the line.
Car Park
Do you like meeting people?
As part of a team, you will be the first point of contact for our visitors. It involves selling or checking tickets and guiding our visitors where to park in our large car park.
Museum
Our small museum which we would like to develop, has various artifacts on display including a working steam beam engine and G scale model railway, all of which require regular maintenance and operating on Open Days.
What if you cannot make a regular commitment?
We all lead busy lives and can’t always commit to a regular pattern of time. The advantage of volunteering at the BWLR is that you don’t have to. You don’t even have to be a “railway person” to get involved, most of our volunteers come from backgrounds that have nothing to do with railways.
How can I get started?
Have you a specific interest you enjoy?
Do you have a skill you would like to share or a new skill you would like to learn?
Whether you have an idea about the area of interest you would like to be involved with, or you would like to come to one of our ‘Volunteer find out more’ days for a tour of the railway where you can meet some of our volunteers, keep an eye on this page for the update on how to do this.
