Railway Heritage Award Winner

Network Rail Minor Works team weren’t the only ones delighted with the quality of the work carried out by their partnership contractor, CML. So were the judges at a prestigious ceremony held in London recently, bestowing the National Railway Heritage Award for the refurbishment of Grade II listed signal boxes at Hexham, Wylam and Haltwhistle.

These buildings represented a major challenge to CML. They were built around the turn of the 20th century on the Newcastle to Carlisle railway line, and had fallen into disrepair.

Hexham and Wylam signal boxes were of particular interest, being supported above the tracks on lattice girders – two of a few remaining examples of North Eastern Railway boxes of the day. Haltwhistle was also had unusual features; standing on narrow brick base it is classic example of boxes located in confined spaces, formerly being located between the tracks.

A great deal of care and attention to detail was taken on the external structures to restore them to their former glory. While internally they were fully refurbished to meet the most exacting modern requirements.

As one of the judges commented: “The reconstruction and restoration work undertaken on these three boxes was of exceptional quality. It is clear that all concerned have gone to a great deal of trouble to recreate the original designs and appearance of the structures.”