Gobowen Station awarded £246k grant for building repairs

Helen Morgan, MP for North Shropshire, said the grant was "great news" for Gobowen

Historic listed buildings at a railway station are set to be restored following a grant from the government.

A £246,146 grant was awarded to Shropshire's Gobowen Station through the Community Ownership Fund.

Money will be spent on external repairs and improvements to buildings that flank both platforms.

The station is among a number of projects nationwide to benefit from more than £150m in funding.

Helen Morgan, MP for North Shropshire, said the grant was "great news" and a "welcome boost" for station staff and volunteers.

"Oswestry Station Building Trust deserves a big round of applause for this success," she said.

She added the next step was to reopen the railway link from Gobowen to Oswestry.

The line was shut in 1966 during the Beeching cuts, which saw thousands of stations closed and lines axed nationwide.

In 2022, plans were presented to the government for a light railway to link Oswestry with Gobowen Station, which has recently celebrated its 175th anniversary.

A decision on the proposals was due by spring this year but has been delayed.

"The outline business case is excellent and it's now down to the government to end the delays and get the wheels turning on improving Shropshire's transport links," Ms Morgan stated.

In August, the Department for Transport said: "We're currently reviewing proposals for our Restoring Your Railway programme, which aims to deliver schemes that benefit local communities, and we expect to announce next steps later in the year."