SEVERN Valley Railway welcomed HRH the Duke of Gloucester to present special awards to mark 50 years of service to some of the Railway's most dedicated volunteers.

The Railway's patron since 1997, the Duke of Gloucester presented 21 of the Railway's long-standing volunteers with awards during a special event on June 14.

Having collectively clocked-up more than 1,000 years of service on the SVR, the group of loyal volunteers - from drivers and station staff, to carriage and maintenance and restoration - were invited to the Railway in order to be thanked for the many years of support.

One of the volunteers who was honoured, Columb Howell, from Bewdley, said it was a "super day".

Mr Howell added: "I have been involved for nearly 52 years now and I can't believe how far the SVR has come in that time.

"It is a great achievement for all the volunteers that have helped over the years.

"It is also fabulous to see that we have new volunteers joining us all the time and we are retaining volunteers to take the Railway forward too."

A self-confessed steam enthusiast, the Duke of Gloucester began his visit at Kidderminster, before boarding GWR Locomotive No. 7802 'Bradley Manor' for the journey to Highley. There he joined the group of invited volunteers for lunch, before the event culminated with the presentation of awards.

Nick Paul, SVR chairman, said: "As we are predominantly a volunteer-run organisation, our volunteers are our lifeblood – without their hard work and dedication, our Railway simply could not function – therefore it is essential that we recognise and say thank you for this fantastic commitment that so many people at the heart of our Railway have shown to us, and for which we are extremely grateful."

It was the second time the Duke of Gloucester has visited the SVR in two years - following his visit in September 2015 to celebrate its Golden Jubilee.