'The harder you try, the luckier you get': Railworld Wildlife Haven attraction marks 30th anniversary

Railworld Wildlife Haven, Peterborough’s leading tourist attraction and pioneering wildlife reservation, is gearing up to celebrate its 30th anniversary.

The ever-popular site in the city centre first opened its doors to the general public back in July 1993.

Brian Pearce, MBE, who is chair and trustee of Railworld Wildlife Haven, remembers how the site used to be back in the early 1980s:

“The north site of the Railworld Wildlife Haven land was formerly the derelict Peterborough Power Station coal storage yard,” he said.

“The whole area was purchased by our founder, the Reverend Richard Paten with his own money.”

Brian explains that the initial idea was to use the site to create a ‘Museum of World Railways’ (MWR) to complement the National Railway Museum in York.

“But after an exciting start,” he recalls, “fundraising for the volunteer project turned out to be a problem, and MWR just never got off the ground.”

By 1992 – the year of the landmark Rio De Janeiro Earth Summit – Richard and his fellow trustees acknowledged the situation and decided to change tack. In a short time, the MWR became the ‘Railworld Sustainable Transport Centre,’ a destination that’s aim was to promote the ever-present environmental benefits of travelling by rail.

Sadly, this ambitious and pioneering initiative failed to acquire adequate funding. However, inspired largely by the pioneering wildlife havens Perkins Engines had created nearby, the volunteers – many of whom (including Brian) worked at Perkins – decided to build a wildlife haven on the north site. And so it was that, in July 1993, Railworld Wildlife Haven did manage to open, albeit in a small way.

Since then, Brian and his small army of dedicated volunteers have begged, borrowed and acquired all manner of artefacts, exhibits, treasures - both natural and engineered. They have also, through the support of generous companies, been given free use of heavy industrial machinery to bring in mammoth installations like aqueducts and bridges. And, in no small part down to Brian’s perseverance and relentless enthusiasm, they also managed to generate the essential funding needed to make it all happen.

“There is an old saying that I really love,” he shares: “The harder you try, the luckier you get.”

Today, the Railworld Wildlife Haven is the city’s leading destination for visitors and residents looking to enjoy a family day out.

Mixing rail and transport heritage and indoor and outdoor model railways with environmental awareness and a truly beautiful nature reserve, the site is now a place people from far and wide routinely visit.

“Back in November I received an email from TripAdvisor,” Brian begins. “They said that, because of our constant good ratings and reviews, the Railworld Wildlife Haven has been placed in their Top 10 percent of worldwide attractions.”

“For a small group of volunteers, that is absolutely amazing.”

Brian is both supremely proud and characteristically modest of what he and his fellow enthusiasts have managed to create:

“We have built this place with the help of so many companies, groups and individuals,” he said.

“It is truly amazing what can be achieved if we all work together for a common goal.”