Hebden Bridge Web

Latest news from the Mytholmroyd Station Partnership

Thursday 2 September 2021 saw the plaque for the Railway Heritage Trust Award made to Network Rail Commercial Property and the Mytholmroyd Station Partnership at the 2019 National Railway Heritage Awards formally unveiled. The ceremony was attended by Chris Harris, Deputy Lieutenant of West Yorkshire, Rob Freeth, the Mayor of Hebden Bridge Town Council, and the local MP, Craig Whittaker, along with Andy Savage, director of the award's sponsor (the Railway Heritage Trust), and representatives of the National Railway Heritage Awards.

The award, which had originally been announced at the NRHA's 40th anniversary award ceremony held in the presence of HRH The Princess Royal in December 2019, was made for the remarkable work, part funded by the Railway Heritage Trust, in stabilising and restoring this Grade II listed station. The building, which dated originally to the 1840s, had been deteriorating for some 30 years before work started on its revival in 2018. The citation for the award in 2019 noted that 'given the very poor condition of the building before work started, it might have been considered doomed. But this is a perfect demonstration that with the right people and attitude, plus access to a reasonable budget, very few buildings are past repair.'

Our thanks go to the Mytholmroyd Station Partnership for a very enjoyable unveiling and for their hospitality. Even the weather was brilliant!

Enjoying the glorious Yorkshire weather following the official unveiling of the plaque at Mytholmroyd station on Thursday 2 September are, from the left, Craig Whittaker, MP for Calder Valley, Geoff Mitchell, chairman of the Mytholmroyd Station Partnership, And Savage, director of the Railway Heritage Trust, Sue Mitchell, secretary of the Mytholmroyd Station Partnership, Chris Harris, Deputy Lieutenant for West Yorkshire, Rob Freeth, Mayor of Hebden Bridge Town Council, and Theo Steel, chairman of the National Railway Heritage Awards.

The platform level view of the station building at Mytholmroyd; the building was divided between the functional part of the station – booking office and waiting room – to the left and stationmaster's accommodation on the right.

The street level view of the station building. Like much of the Calder Valley, Mytholmroyd has suffered severely from flooding in recent years and the ground floor of the building was affected. The restoration work on the exterior was extensive and included repointing using lime mortar, restoring the front elevation chimney, replacing windows and the use of new cast-iron rain water goods.

Internally, the partnership has worked to stabilise the building in order to work towards the creation of spaces for use by local groups. Before work started in 2018 on its stabilisation and restoration, the Grade II listed building had suffered three decades of deterioration. As part of the ongoing work all surviving historic features – such as the stairs, handrails and plaster cornices – have been reused or replicated where necessary.

Anyone who might be looking for a space, studio, office etc, should contact the Partnership at Communityhub.myt@btinternet.com