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Oswestry Station named 'Station of the Year 2026'

Cambrian Heritage Railways (CHR) are happy to announce that Oswestry Station has won ‘Station of the Year 2026’ at the Heritage Railway Association’s (HRA) annual awards which were held at Llandudno last Saturday.

By contributor Philip Bradley
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Supporting image for story: Oswestry Station named 'Station of the Year 2026'
CHR receives the ‘Station of the Year’ award on stage at Llandudno, from R to L, Rob Williams (Chairman), Beth Gloster (Treasurer), Phil Bradley (Head of Operations & Retail), Dave Roll (Weston Wharf Station Manager) receive the award from Llyr ap Iolo (Vale of Rheidol’s Managing Director)

After collecting the award Rob Williams, Chairman of CHR explained: "This award looks at many factors of the station, including the condition, facilities, volunteer effort and community engagement. The station recently benefited from a £900,000 external restoration by Shropshire Council. CHR has however, over the last two years invested considerable amount of time and effort improving the internal offering to our customers for the Oswestry to Weston Wharf railway. We’ve redesigned our shop area, recommissioned our café which gained a 5-star hygiene rating and created a function room. 

"The station is entirely run by volunteers; our late Station Manager Jenny Pickstock would have been extremely proud of this award. HRA judges were impressed by our use of the only main line pre- grouping headquarters station in preservation particularly our community engagement which included our highly commended ‘Oswestry in Bloom’ award and none-railway use of the function room."

CHR’s Head of Operations & Retail, Phil Bradley followed up with: "Winning this award as we gear up for our 2026 season is fantastic news. Our services start on Good Friday, April 3, with our full calendar and timetables now available on our website. We also look forward to our events this year which include the Beer Festival, Model Railway Show and our very popular Santa Trains. 

The award is shown on a window sill at Oswestry Station the day after the awards.
The award is shown on a window sill at Oswestry Station the day after the awards.

"Our function room has seen much use since we opened it in early 2025 and has been used for railway talks, local tourism groups and even birthday parties, we are happy to see the room taking a central place in the local community. 

"The award also reflects the dedication from all our volunteers and is testament to their hard work in delivering a fantastic attraction for the area, if you’d like to join us, we are always looking for people to add to our passionate team."

Austin 1 seen at Oswestry during the 2025 Beer Festival which was held inside Oswestry Stations function room.
Austin 1 seen at Oswestry during the 2025 Beer Festival which was held inside Oswestry Stations function room.

For more information on CHR & our operating calendar please visit cambrianrailways.com