New restructuring plans from the Severn Valley Railway have been announced in what it describes is a ‘bold and essential move’.

The railway is looking for approval from its shareholders and members for the plans, which will bring together all three companies into one new ‘Our Railway’ structure.

The first step would see Severn Valley Railway (Holdings) PLC converted into a Charitable Community Benefit Society.

Following this, the new CCBS would come together with the Severn Valley Railway Company Limited, which is the organisation that looks after memberships and provides volunteers.

The Severn Valley Railway Charitable Trust is supportive of the plan but cannot commit to it at present as it is undergoing a period of transition but will see this become part of the CCBS as soon as possible.

‘For the past two years, a working party of people who care deeply about the future of the SVR has been carrying out a strategic review of how the railway might be better organised and positioned. Its conclusion is that the SVR urgently needs a new type of company structure, to ensure it’s in the best possible position to survive and thrive in the years to come.’

‘There’s no doubt that what we’re planning is bold,’ added Chris Walton, chair of SVR(H). ‘But it’s something that we consider to be absolutely essential, to ensure our railway survives and prospers.

Chris Walton, the chair of Severn Valley Railway (Holdings) Plc