Shropshire Star

Climb onto Land Rover train for 50th

A country park in Shropshire is holding a family-friendly event to mark 50 years since mining ceased on the Severn Valley.

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The Land Rover train will take passengers on the same route used 50 years ago

Pit at the Park will run from 10am to 4pm on Sunday, October 6 at Severn Valley Country Park, in Alveley near Bridgnorth.

From rides on a Land Rover train around the park and pit pony rides for children to guest appearances from the Granville Miners, organisers said there will be attractions for all.

A Land Rover train offering rides between the visitor centre and the country park halt will replicate the journey that coal used to take from the pit-head to the railway line.

Severn Valley Railway is also offering a £5 return ticket from the Country Park Halt to Highley Station, including free entry into the Engine House where visitors can see the Highley Colliery coal truck on display. Railway tickets will be on sale at the Severn Valley Country Park Visitor Centre – where refreshments will also be available.

Other attractions throughout the day will include Rock and Fossil hunts for families, pony rides on the same animals that once worked down the mines, a chance for children to dress up as miners, the showing of a short film giving a unique underground view of mining in the Forest of Dean, and the unveiling of a new sculpture dedicated to those who worked at both Highley and Alveley Collieries.

Lezley Picton, Shropshire Council cabinet member for culture, leisure, communications and waste, said: “The stories of quarrying, mining and ferries at Severn Valley Country Park are fascinating and in danger of being lost as the park develops.

“Shropshire Council is proud to be delivering the Severn Valley Lives in the Landscape project to tell these stories to visitors and acknowledge the local families that have a historic link to the park."

The event is part of the Severn Valley Lives in the Landscape project and organised in partnership with the Alveley Mining Heritage Group. The project is supported by The National Lottery Heritage Fund, Shropshire Council and The Jean Jackson Charitable Trust.

Ms Picton added: "The Pit at the Park event will commemorate this important anniversary and will be a great day out for all the family. We are very grateful to the National Lottery Heritage Fund and The Jean Jackson Charitable Trust for their generous support.”

There will also be coal shovelling competitions, pond dipping sessions, self-led trails for families, geology themed craft activities and more.