The first week of the summer holidays has started well with the Reading group organising two wonderful train trips – one to Pinewood Miniature Railway and the other to Fawley Hill, entertaining over 70 people at both events. We are grateful to the team of volunteers at both railways for delivering such a wonderful visitor experience.
August is looking exciting with trips to High Wycombe and to Great Cockrow Railway planned. For more info on trips please email mail@theengineshed.org.uk.
After a couple of years of fundraising we have been able to buy a mini-bus/van to transport people and trains! This will enable us to hold further pop-up train sessions, as well as to take groups of Engine Shed train enthusiasts on days out. We look forward to a fun-filled summer….
We are grateful to the many funders and some individuals who helped us with this significant purchase. They include Earley Charity, Shanly Foundation, Mobbs Memorial Trust, Awards For All, The Cresswell family, Reading Lions, The John Sykes Foundation, Rotary Club Reading Abbey and others. We plan to detail the names of funders on the side of the vehicle.
Thank you to everyone who has helped us with this wonderful asset which will make our activities much more accessible.
Our volunteer Michael is leading on setting up an Engine Shed group in Bromley. The group meets on the first Sunday of the month; the first few sessions have been very well attended! As always there is no need to book and free entry and refreshments etc.
Venue: Bromley Scout Hall, 93 Plaistow Lane, Bromley BR1 3AR
Time: 11am to 2pm
Remaining session for 2022 is Sunday 4 December
We are grateful to Localgiving for the recent grant of £500 towards a train day out for The Engine Shed attendees. We have lots to catch up on after the lockdown period and we are looking forward to spending time together.
We are very grateful to the John Sykes Foundation for a generous grant of £1,000 towards our efforts to buy a van for The Engine Shed. Our volunteer JJ’s van is no longer up to the job and he is really only keeping it on the road for us! Sian from the Foundation attended our session at Katesgrove Children’s Centre in Reading to present the cheque along with local Councillor Sophia James. We received some local press coverage which you can see below:
https://rdg.today/grant-from-john-skyes-foundation-is-on-the-right-tracks-for-the-engine-shed/
Reading and the NE London group are trying to run to timetable! All dates are listed under the group tabs on the website. We will need to keep an eye on all Covid guidelines but we will aim to deliver as many sessions as we can. We know that we have lost a lot of time and it has been very difficult for many of us. Sadly the Polar Express trip that the Reading group were booked on for 20 December was cancelled the night before; we have transferred tickets to next year.
Both the Reading and the Chingford sessions have met in the last couple of weeks and it has been so good to see everyone again! So much has happened in the last eighteen months and it is great to be able to offer friends, community and TRAINS to families new and old….check out the group pages for information on the forthcoming sessions. As always postings are also on Facebook, with other information too that may benefit our community. It is good to be back 🙂
Our adult group has an exciting range of activities planned for 2020. Drop us a line if you would like to join us as we explore train related attractions in Berkshire, London and the South East! Email us at mail@theengineshed.org.uk
