Model railway manufacturer PECO is inviting entries from UK residents of all ages and experience levels to its RAIL200 Model Layout Competition.

The competition commemorates the bicentenary of first journey of the modern railway in September 1825.

It opened today (Monday 7 April) and will close on Tuesday 30 September 2025.

The aim of the Competition is to engage both new and experienced modellers in celebrating the bicentenary.

The competition is running in two separate categories.

In the Modular Competition, modellers will create a layout using an OO gauge piece of track, which PECO will provide.

There are strict guidelines for entries to ensure that they are compatible with each other. PECO will then link the finalists’ layouts together, creating a large, cohesive exhibition.

This will be displayed at a venue which PECO will announce at a later date. PECO technicians will assemble finalists’ layouts, which will then be placed on display for public viewing.

The Standalone Competition invites modellers to create a layout in any scale or gauge. The focus is exclusively on what PECO calls “scenic creativity and imaginative design”.

Entrants’ dioramas will be standalone pieces, and will not be have to be able to connect operationally with other layouts. Finalists’ layouts will be displayed to the public. publicly and featured in Railway Modeller magazine.

For both categories, an independent panel of judges will decide which layouts will be featured in Railway Modeller. Winners and runners-up will receive prizes, details of which will be published on the PECO website.

To enter either category of the competition, modellers will need to buy a RAIL200 baseboard. PECO will post this to entrants, together with instructions on how to assemble their baseboard. Entrants will also receive information on how to register their entry online or by post.

Entrants will need to send high-quality photographs of their completed layouts or dioramas by the deadline.

PECO Model Railways announced last month that it has acquired the Scottish model railway retailer Harburn Hobbies.

Other model railway events celebrating the bicentenary include an exhibition at High Wycombe and the production of models of the LNER 200 train.