Watercress Line Heritage Railway Trust

Registered charity 284406 · since 1982watercressline.co.uk·Hampshire, Portsmouth, Southampton, Surrey, West Berkshire·Updated 30 October 2026

Key takeaways

Watercress Line Heritage Railway Trust works on heritage railway preservation, so a request fits best if it concerns restoring or maintaining historic locomotives, carriages, track or signalling.
Its annual report gives no readable grants figure and its register entry shows no grants to institutions, so no typical grant size is published; keep any request modest and ask the Trust what it can consider.
No application process is published in its annual report, register entry or on its website, so the contact shown there is the route to start, and nothing published shows how competitive or relationship-led its giving is.
Its stated geographic focus is Alresford, although its register entry lists a wider registered area of operation, so check with the contact whether your project falls within its work.
No exclusions or eligibility conditions are stated, so ask rather than assume either way.

Overview

Watercress Line Heritage Railway Trust is a charity registered with the Charity Commission for England and Wales (charity number 284406).

Watercress Line Heritage Railway Trust is a charity registered in England and Wales that exists to preserve, restore, maintain, operate and exhibit heritage railways, locomotives, rolling stock, buildings and equipment, and to promote interest in them. It provides strategic direction to its subsidiary, Mid-Hants Railway Ltd, which operates the Watercress Line. Its fundraising supports the restoration and maintenance of heritage locomotives and carriages, along with the track and signalling needed to run trains.

What they fund

Priority Areas

The Trust's stated charitable purpose is to preserve, restore, maintain, operate and exhibit heritage railways and associated locomotives, rolling stock, buildings, artifacts and equipment, to promote interest in them and to foster and support railway preservation. Its fundraising supports restoration and maintenance of heritage locomotives and carriages, as well as the permanent way, track and signalling infrastructure needed to run trains. The Trust also describes an ambition to be a living museum, giving visitors and supporters opportunities to learn about the role of railways and steam power in the development of the community, industry and commerce. Its work centres on railway heritage and the preservation of historic rail infrastructure and rolling stock.

Themes

Heritage railway preservation

Geographic Focus

Alresford.

How to apply

No application process is published in the charity's annual report, its register entry or its website. The contact shown is for getting in touch.

Where they fund

Registered area of operation (Charity Commission)

Portsmouth
Southampton
West Berkshire
Hampshire
Surrey

Similar funders

Funders supporting work similar to Watercress Line Heritage Railway Trust.

The Sargent Charitable TrustNo public processGave £181k Mobbs Memorial Trust LimitedRollingGave £85,000 Wavestone UK TrustNo public processGave £79,621 Colefax Charitable TrustInvitation onlyGave £164k Thistledown Education TrustNo public process The David Clarke Railway TrustNo public processGave £747k The Pople Charitable TrustNo public processGave £229k The Elaine and Angus Lloyd Charitable TrustRollingGave £115k James Tuttiett Charitable TrustRollingGave £79,116 The Friends of the National Railway MuseumRolling

Five years of accounts

Financial year	Income	Expenditure	Grants paid	Accounts document
year to 31 January 2021	£3,102,562	£2,708,740	£4,225	Accounts for year to 31 January 2021
year to 31 March 2022	£4,643,677	£3,778,111	£3,334	Accounts for year to 31 March 2022
year to 31 March 2023	£3,914,320	£4,911,080	—	Accounts for year to 31 March 2023
year to 31 March 2024	£3,846,638	£3,418,544	—	Accounts for year to 31 March 2024
year to 31 March 2025	£3,658,953	£3,811,954	—	Accounts for year to 31 March 2025

Income vs grants paid

IncomeGrants paid

Total value each financial year

YE 2021

£4,225 grants

YE 2022

£3,334 grants

Grants paid stayed within income across the 2 years shown.

Grants paid, year to 31 January 2021; year to 31 March 2022: grants to institutions, as reported on the charity register (Part B).

— No grants figure for those years.

Figures from the charity’s filed accounts and its register entry. The document icon links to the charity’s entry on the Charity Commission register, where its filed accounts can be found.