A visit to the Statfold Barn Railway

My love of railways was inspired by late uncle Alan Maund who was a respected railway photographer and artist. When I was a child, he would often take me along with him when he went on photography or train spotting trips. Alan had a love for industrial railways and narrow gauge, which I too have come to share.

As a child I remember learning about steam engines from my uncle and Grandfather who had lovingly restored ‘Kerr Stewart' Wren class locomotive Number 3144, the loco would run on a short section of track laid in my grandparents' garden. Alan later sold the loco and brought a 5-inch gauge steam miniature railway which ran around his garden and where he taught me how to drive a miniature steam locomotive.

Life, having a family and a career then became my focus and it was not until retirement couple of years ago that my love of railways and narrow gauge was rekindled. I started to build my own model railway and visit heritage steam railways, mostly standard gauge at first. Then an advert on a social media site popped up one day for an event at the Statfold Barn Railway in Staffordshire and I quickly rediscovered my interest in narrow gauge.

I made my first ‘railway trip' of 2023 to Statfold Barn Railway near Tamworth in Staffordshire on April 1st. This was my fourth trip to the railway since I discovered its existence early last year after seeing the social media advert I mentioned earlier. I went to the ‘Penrhyn quarry' event in February 2022 and later in the year the Model Railway event and then the ‘Sweat Indian Steam' events.  I was hooked on the place. As I am unable to drive the fact that I can use public transport to easily get to Statfold was a draw. I caught a train to Tamworth and from the station travelled to Statfold on a heritage bus.

The railway has a partnership with Wythall Transport Museum, who provide vintage and heritage busses which run a free regular service between Tamworth railway station and Statfold for most of the railway's special events, of which there are many throughout the year. My transfer on this occasion was provided by a 1968 Daimler Fleetline double decker in Walsall Corporation livery.

The railway was busy on the day of my visit with the car parks filling quickly and a queue of vehicles waiting to get in, once inside however, with the site being spread over 1,000 acres it did not feel overcrowded and waiting times to ride on trains or view exhibits not too long.

The model railway show had over 30 exhibition layouts spread across three of the large sheds around the site, layouts ranged from N gauge through to gauge 1 which depicted many eras from early steam through to modern diesel and electric. There were several OO9 gauge layouts, representing narrow gauge modelling which was fitting given the venue. In addition to the exhibition layouts there were plenty of trade stands.

Statfold has a 1.5 mile long 2-foot gauge railway, a multi gauge garden railway (sadly closed on the day of my visit) and a 2ft 11-inch gauge tramway, plus the new 12 ¼ inch ‘Mease Valley Line'.

Statfold has an impressive collection of narrow-gauge locomotives, including steam, diesel, petrol, and electric engines many of which are operational. Non-operational locomotives and those not being used on the day are displayed in the railway's roundhouse and museum, a treat for narrow-gauge enthusiasts in its own right.  On the day of my visit 8 steam locomotives and the ‘Burton and Ashby Light Railway- electric tram were in service.

I managed to ride behind most of the steam engines in service including ‘Alpha' an 0-6-0 pannier tank built by Hudswell Clarke as number 1172 in 1922, ‘Fiji another' Hudswell Clarke 0-6-0 loco built in 1912 for the Lautoka Sugar Mill in Fiji, ‘Ogwen' an Avonside 0-4-0 number 2066 built in 1933 for Penrhyn Quarry, Harrogate a Peckett 0-6-0 built for Harrogate Gas Works in 1944, ‘Howard' a Hunslet 0-4-0 built in 1936 for the British Aluminium Company and ‘Statfold' a Hunslet loco built at Statfold in 2005. Also, in service on a ‘drive a for a fiver' footplate experience was ‘Isibutu' a W.G. Bagnal engine built in 1946 for Tongat Sugar in Natal.

I ended my trip with a couple of rides on the newest miniature railway in the UK and newest addition to Statfold Railway the ‘Mease Valley Line.'

The line runs for about a third of a mile from a new terminus, which comprises of a platform, turntable and a four-line stock shed. For the first hundred metres or so the track is set into concrete, which I found to give a noisy ride.

The line then crosses an access road / bridle path and enters a field which is used for camping during events and finishes at a station which comprises of a platform and run round loop at the bottom of the field, this station is adjacent to Duck Decoy Wood where it looks like walks are being created. Currently the operation is out and back but I understand extentions are possible and may involve a loop around the field.

Mease Valley has two locomotives. ‘Victoria' is an Exmoor Steam Railway 2-4-2 Number 332 which was constructed in 2007 for the unfulfilled Tintern Abbey railway.

It eventually went to the Scarborough Fair collection in Yorkshire moving to Statfold after an overhaul in 2023. No 73 is a diesel hydralic lcomotive built by Alan Keef in 2005 for a private railway.

It subsequential went to the  Exmoor Steam Railway and was purchased by Statfold for use on the Mease Valley line in 2022. I got to ride behind both locomotives on my visit.

The Mease Valley rolling stock comprise of carriages that were either built for the 15-inch gauge Liverpool Garden Festival Railway or the Tintern Abbey project.

The carriages are enclosed and generously proportioned for the 12 ¼ inch gauge.

I thoroughly enjoyed my visit to Statfold Barn Railway and am sure I will revisit soon.