Didcot to bid to be home to Great British Railway headquarters

The leader of South Oxfordshire District Council has said the railway is the 'heart and soul of Didcot'

Didcot is set to put its name forward to become the home of a new national body for the country's railways.

South Oxfordshire District Council and Vale of White Horse District Council have confirmed they will be submitting an official expression of interest for the town.

It is part of a competition to find a host for the headquarters for Great British Railway (GBR).

The winner is expected to be announced this summer.

Based outside London, GBR will be responsible for ticket prices, setting timetables and rail infrastructure.

The competition was announced by Transport Secretary Grant Shapps last year.

Other places to have put their names forward include Southampton, Swindon, Crewe, York, and Doncaster.

The government said GBR's headquarters would go to a place "with a rich railway history".

'Heart and soul'

Councillor David Rouane, leader of South Oxfordshire District Council, said Didcot was an ideal location for the new headquarters.

"It could be argued that the railway is the heart and soul of Didcot," he added.

The town is already home to the Didcot Railway Centre, which displays and runs trains from the history of Great Western Railway.

The Foremarke Hall locomotive at Didcot Railway Centre

Didcot Railway Centre's beginnings as a heritage site began when the Great Western Society moved into a former engine shed there in 1967 to preserve steam locomotives and their carriages, as diesel trains replaced them.

It has also been a popular location for shooting feature films, including Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows, Anna Karenina, Paddington 2 and The Electrical Life of Louis Wain.

A fundraising campaign to save a failing water tower at the centre was launched last month.

If Didcot is shortlisted, residents will have the chance to vote during a consultation in May.

Didcot Railway Centre's beginnings as a heritage site date back to 1967