Doncaster latest to bid for Great Britain Railways headquarters

The world-famous Flying Scotsman built in 1923 and the Mallard (1938) were built in Doncaster

Doncaster has entered the race to become the home of a new national body for the country's railways.

The town was the birthplace of the Mallard and Flying Scotsman locomotives and has "over 150 years of engineering excellence", said its mayor, Ros Jones.

A competition to find a host for the new body was announced by Transport Secretary Grant Shapps, this month.

The headquarters would go to a place "with a rich railway history", said the government announcement.

Ms Jones added: "Our geographic location and transport links are perfectly situated at the heart of the British rail network servicing a massive area of the country."

The new state-owned GBR was announced in May in a plan to reform the railway system.

York has also made a bid for the rail headquarters.

Dan Jarvis, mayor of the Sheffield City Region, and local MPs Rosie Winterton, Ed Miliband and Nick Fletcher have all backed the Doncaster bid.

Mr Jarvis said: "The government has pledged to 'level up' our communities, and building the new home for the railways in Doncaster would bring much-needed jobs and investment to South Yorkshire."

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The town is home to the Doncaster Plant Works and the National College for Advanced Transport and Infrastructure.

A new rail heritage centre in Doncaster opened in 2021.

Green Arrow was also built in Doncaster in 1936 and currently sits in a new heritage centre