National award caps off milestone year for Darlington’s rail story
Region’s railway heritage is recognised by national award. Tony Henderson reports
A major railway heritage project in the North East has won a national award.
Hopetown Darlington landed the Chairman’s Special Award at the 2025 National Railway Heritage Awards, recognising the outstanding preservation and revitalisation of three of the town’s historic railway buildings.
The awards are an annual celebration to recognise the best in re-use, restoration and conservation of Britain’s historic railway infrastructure.
The Special Award was presented by Peter Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill, Minister of State for Rail, during the ceremony in London.
The award reflects the extensive work undertaken as part of the £37 million transformation of heritage railway buildings and historic railway land into a 7.5-acre, railway-themed visitor attraction in the heart of Darlington, which opened in July 2024.
The project has revitalised one of the town’s most significant historic sites, safeguarding its pioneering railway heritage while creating an inspiring visitor attraction.
The award rounds off this year’s celebrations marking the 200th anniversary of the opening of the Stockton & Darlington Railway.
Coun Libby McCollom, cabinet member for local services at Darlington Borough Council, said: “Receiving the award is a tremendous honour for everyone involved in Hopetown Darlington from its earliest stages.
“We have always believed this site is one of Darlington’s greatest assets. To see this recognised by the National Railway Heritage Awards is incredibly rewarding.”
“This accolade reinforces our commitment to preserving Darlington’s rich railway history while shaping a cultural destination that will continue to inspire residents and visitors for years to come.”
Mike Crawshaw, head of heritage and culture at Darlington Borough Council, added: “Preserving these remarkable buildings is not just about safeguarding our past. It’s about celebrating what makes Darlington unique.
“This recognition puts our town and our attraction firmly on the national stage and is a testament to the dedication, passion, and hard work of everyone involved in the project from the very beginning.”
Hopetown also recently received a VisitEngland Welcome Accolade for delivering an exceptional visitor experience. An award plaque will be unveiled at Hopetown in January.
A two-year project to restore the historic canopy at Whitley Bay Metro station also earned Nexus a commendation in the urban heritage section of the awards.
The multi-million pound project at the listed station, which was built in 1910, involved the installation of 1,296 new panes of glass and the strengthening and repainting of the canopy steelwork.
The station sees 1.2 million customer journeys per year – and is a key gateway into North Tyneside. The work was carried out by Kier Group.
Cathy Massarella, managing director at Nexus, said: “We’ve restored and repaired all of the steelwork. New and modern glazing has been installed and the canopy now has glazing above the tracks as it was originally constructed.
“Whitley Bay is a station with a great deal of charm. It has served Metro since the network opened in 1980. This project has ensured that the station will be there for people to enjoy for many decades to come.”
The adaptive reuse angle on this is really smart. £37m to turn historic railway infrastructure into a visitor attraction that actually generates ongoing value rather than just being a preservation cost center. Worked with a team trying to do something similar for some old industrial buildings and the balance between authenticity and viability is tricky. The fact they managed to hit both heritage preservation and modern visitor experience standards (VisitEngland accolade) shows they got the recipe right.