What is the RHT?
Introduction to the Railway Heritage Trust
The Railway Heritage Trust was established in 1985 to help in the preservation and upkeep of listed railway buildings and structures, and in the transfer of non-operational railway premises and structures to outside bodies willing to undertake their preservation.
The formation of the Trust was announced at a London conference on ‘The Future of the Railway Heritage’ on 23 October 1984. The Trust was then incorporated as an independent company limited by guarantee and commenced operations in April 1985. It is formally owned by its members, who are usually the Directors of the Trust, and is independent of both Network Rail and National Highways, although both bodies provide its sponsorship.
The Trust achieves its objectives by giving both advice and grants. It awards grants, following the evaluation of an application, normally on the basis of an award of between 10-40% of grant-eligible repair or restoration costs, excluding professional fees and project management costs. The Trust pays grants to train operating companies, tenants of railway-owned premises and to applicants from Network Rail and the National Highways (Historical Railways Estate). The Trust keeps its procedures for the award of grants as simple as possible.
Our Governance
The Trust has a Board of three Directors. Its Chair is Andy Savage, former Deputy Chief Inspector of the Rail Accident Investigation Branch of the Department for Transport, who has had a long career in railway civil engineering and contractor safety. Andy was Executive Director of the Trust from 2010 to 2022. The current Executive Director is Tim Hedley-Jones, who has had a long career in the East Coast train operating company. Prior to that, he worked for HM Diplomatic Service. Ptolemy Dean, Architect to Westminster Abbey, is the other, non-Executive Director. As well as the Executive Director, the Trust employs Anna Jipps as Company Secretary. It is also assisted by a voluntary Advisory Panel of approximately 35 members.
The Trust’s budget has grown from £1m in 1985/86 to £2.7m today. Its scope is basically buildings and structures owned by Network Rail, including those properties on a long lease to The Arch Company. The scope also includes structures which are part of the National Highways (Historical Railways Estate). The Trust does not support heritage railways directly (unless they lease Network Rail assets), nor does it deal with rolling stock, other mobile heritage or artefacts.
Our Grants
Our grants can cover:
• contributions to restoration project partnerships;
• enhancements to remediation and restoration projects;
• the reinstatement of missing or demolished features of historic buildings and structures; and
• the repair of special fittings and equipment such as clocks, murals, memorials and fixed furniture.
Grants are also available to help bring disused accommodation in historic premises back into beneficial use as a means of assisting conservation by regeneration and re-use.
The Trust encourages applicants to approach as many other funding partners as possible. Since 1985, the Trust has awarded over 2,000 grants, to a total value of £72m, to projects in England, Scotland and Wales. The Trust has played a part in attracting to those projects further contributions of more than £100m. Cadw Welsh Historic Monuments, Historic England and Historic Environment Scotland have worked with the Trust on many jointly-funded projects.
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Our Focus
As well as awarding grants, the Trust comments directly to many planning authorities on applications for Listed Building Consent and Planning Permission for works to historic railway stations and structures in their areas.
The Trust supports a wide range of projects each year, with a balance struck between buildings and structures, and between large projects and small. Projects supported by grants from the Trust attract funding from the National Heritage Lottery Fund and other national heritage bodies. A particular focus of the non-operational side of the Trust’s work relates to the regeneration of disused viaducts, supporting repair to facilitate their eventual transfer to trusts or other parties.
Our watchwords are Significance, Social Value and Sustainability. In recent years it has become increasingly accepted that historic premises are valuable assets, to be appreciated and properly maintained. Most stations have historical and local significance. Often communities wish to take over disused space at stations, and the Trust works with many such bodies including Community Rail Partnerships and ‘Friends of’ Station Groups. This can help develop the Social Value of Stations for the rail industry.
There is also an increasingly important environmental argument for re-using old buildings rather than demolishing them. When buildings are demolished, the carbon used in their construction is lost forever. If the rail industry is serious about achieving net zero and more sustainable operations, it must also be serious about re-using and restoring old buildings.