Volunteering

If you enjoy being around railways, why not be part of the group that runs Fawley Museum? We are looking for enthusiastic people to join our team of volunteers.

There is a wide variety of activities in which to get involved. Would you like to learn to fire or drive our steam locomotive or learn to drive one of our diesel engines? How about being the Station Master or one of the Signallers during Invitation Days? Could you work on the track and infrastructure with our Permanent Way and Signalling teams?

If small artefacts are more your thing, perhaps you could help in looking after the Museum collection? If larger machinery appeals to you, there are many items in need of restoration for public display.

Fawley can boast one of the few all-female train crews on heritage railways. Drivers Rachel and Diane and guard Sue await passengers at Somersham Station.

All of these activities would benefit from your contribution. If you would like to help us on the railway or in the Museum at any of our events or at our bi-weekly maintenance days, we will be very happy to hear from you. No previous experience is usually necessary and we provide training for all the activities that we undertake.

We hold 'maintenance days' on Tuesdays and Thursdays when volunteers meet to carry out work on the site. this is supplemented with occasional Sundays for those who can't attend during the week.

If you are interested in joining us as a volunteer and would like further information about this, please contact us at enquiries@fawleymuseum.co.uk

What do we do on Maintenance Days?

The collection of artefacts, whether they are static pieces in the museum or operating items on the railway, require constant attention to keep them in good condition. To achieve this, on a typical maintenance day (a Tuesday or a Thursday), you will find volunteers undertaking tasks such as painting, restoring broken equipment, installing new trackwork, overhauling mechanical and electrical equipment, cataloguing the artefacts and cleaning. There is always a queue of rolling stock awaiting refurbishment and repainting; the latest admission to the workshop is our Lancashire and Yorkshire coach 'Judy'. Our rare BSA Truck Mover, which had been in the collection for many years in an inoperable state, has now been returned to working order.

L & Y Half-Coach 'Judy'

Following the discovery of some deterioration in the timber work, 'Judy' has been taken into the workshop for some refurbishment.

Separated from it's chassis, the outer skinning has been removed and the frame is being allowed to dry before replacement of the timbers begin. If you would like to take part in this or our other refurbishment projects, we would be pleased to hear from you. Wood-working skills, although useful, are not essential.

BSA Truck Mover

Our BSA Truck Mover is now operating again after several weeks of TLC from a small band of our volunteers. Looking like a deranged lawn mower, the device is powered by a BSA two-stroke petrol engine which powers the wheels and a hydraulic jack. Dating from 1949, this device allowed a wagon to be moved around a goods yard by a single person instead of two men and either a horse or a motorised capstan. Interestingly, the idea did not catch on for reasons that are unclear. The Mover is designed to run on the railhead and, when under the buffer, to take some the weight of the wagon, allowing it to be pushed or pulled by the Wagon Mover.

Two of our volunteers have spent time bringing the machine back to life to recapture life from more than 70 years ago.

Volunteer Peter tries to get the hang of balancing the Wagon Mover

Sue carries out a safety check on the gauge of the track

Volunteer Martyn in the Signal Box

Our model of the R100 airship, which is suspended at high level in the concourse, gets a gentle cleaning with a blusher brush to remove accumulated dust. It is a painstaking job as the airship fabric is very fragile

Trains are usually run on maintenance days which allows signallers to maintain their competency

Fawley has a very large collection of cast iron signs that require regular re-painting