University Campus Barnsley and Barnsley College Travel and Tourism students have partnered with Elsecar Heritage Railway and Centre to launch a major World War 1 event.

The major living history project wants to help remember, educate and celebrate the end of World War 1 and return to those involved to South Yorkshire on Thursday 17th May 2018.

Working with Great Place Wentworth and Elsecar, the students have been working hard to create the commemoration over two weeks in November 2018. The project focuses in on the demobilisation of troops, nurses and others on the front line to their homes in the UK between 1918 and 1920.

To achieve this recreation, they have teamed up with Elsecar Heritage Railway and Elsecar Heritage Centre to portray the journey made by million

Steam locomotives 813, built in 1904 in Leeds, and Great North of Scotland six-wheeled carriage No.34 will visit the Elsecar Railway for the event.

813 comes from the Severn Valley Railway, in Kidderminster, and No. 34 comes from the Embsay and Bolton Abbey Railway, in Skipton.

It is anticipated that 2,000 people will attend the Home from the Front event in November 2018. This centres around the students creating a 45 demobilisation experience including 25-minute steam train ride using No. 813 and No. 34 with actors on board.

The public is being invited to contribute to a crowdfunding campaign, making the event bigger and better by contributing towards to hiring of a second railway carriage – also based in Skipton, and will complete the train.

They are being offered rewards in return, such as event and performance tickets and rides on the locomotive.

If you would like to contribute to the Crowdfunding page, please click here

£16,000 has already been secured from many sources.

What did the officials say?

Oliver Edwards, Tourism Management student at UCB, said:

“This project will help to strengthen relationships between students and the wider community, and will give practical skills for the future. We’re grateful to all our partners for their help to deliver this innovative project.”

Neil Johnson, Head of Sport, Public Services, Travel and Tourism at UCB, added:

“We are delighted the students are leading this new and exciting event. It is a great opportunity for them to put the skills they learn at the university campus into a real-life setting.”

Rachel Blake, Great Place Programme Manager, said:

“Great Place are thrilled to support this innovative event in Elsecar. It will really bring local history to life.”

Graham Noble, a local WW1 historian who has been working with Elsecar Holy Trinity Church,
went on to say:

“Researching the lives of local people during World War One has given us a
great opportunity to learn about the impact the war had on the village. Through telling the stories of real people we can gain a wider understanding of how the community would have been affected during the demobilisation process”

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