Didcot Railway Centre Signalling

Didcot Railway Centre Signalling Our mission is to fulfil our potential as a heritage venue at the centre of its community. That's all a little way off though.

There are seven original Western-Region "turn-push" type panels left in operation. Network Rail has plans to close most, if not all, of them within the next few years. A small group has convened with the aim of preventing this panel design, that has been the staple panel of the Great Western since the 1960s, passing into history unpreserved. Our examination of the feasibility of doing this has, so

far, produced the following results:
* Our attention is focussed on Swindon Panel, which is in good condition and has a good number of interesting and varied infrastructure features on it.
* Network Rail have agreed to our obtaining the panel when it is taken out of use in May 2014.
* The plan is to remove the panel from the current Swindon Panel building (which is to be demolished) and reconstruct in a secure location off-site.
* We have agreement for us to use purpose-built, Simsig-driven signalling simulation software to build (and people with experience to program) a simulator back-end for the Panel. This will enable it to function and be operated realistically, for the interest and education of those interested in railway signalling and MAS technology.
* Our final plan, when we've achieved this, is to start 'winding the clock back' and reinstating some long-gone infrastructure on the panel fascia, back to a period in about 1982-84, when the layout was at its most interesting and most complex! We ultimately intend to supplement the exhibit of the panel with other explanatory items such as examples and explanations of relay interlockings, colour light signals, junction sequences, remote controls, etc. We are still very much in the early stages, but we believe we are able to say with confidence that the technical and physical aspects of the project overall are feasible.

16/08/2026

Swindon Panel Society has now merged with the Great Western Society. This enables both organisations to more effectively deliver their objects.

It was previously advised that this page would close, but instead it will now be continued under the wider remit of 'Didcot Railway Centre Signalling' for post and articles of interest relating to the signalling artefacts and installations at Didcot Railway Centre. (Note the main DRC page is at Didcot Railway Centre)

We hope this change is enjoyed by follower in preference to the page being closed.

Wow! Look at this amazing piece of Swindon signalling memorabilia!This is the block bell, believed to be from Swindon We...
03/06/2026

Wow! Look at this amazing piece of Swindon signalling memorabilia!

This is the block bell, believed to be from Swindon West, for communicating with Rodbourne Lane signal box, the next box to the west.

A single block bell can generally unambiguously cope with block communication for two single-direction lines of traffic, or one bi-directional line. Where there is more than this between two signal boxes additional bells were provided, and hence the identification of the lines the bell applies to was shown on the plate in addition to the name of the signal box it communicated with. There were three lines between Rodbourne Lane and Swindon West, this being the bell for the two Main Lines, with another being provided for the Up Goods Running Loop.

We believe this bell is from West rather than Rushey Platt (which would also have had two bells to Rodbourne Lane, thus requiring the line name on the plate), because inside the case of this bell is prominently written the word ‘West’.

The plate being mounted on top of the case in this way is unusual - normally the plate is on the shelf underneath the bell. The block shelf in Swindon West would have been extremely busy with plungers, signal repeaters, and other instruments, so we suspect that is why the plate was mounted where it was.

If anyone has a photo of this bell in-situ in Swindon West (or any other photos from inside East or West Boxes!) we would love to see them!

Another little gem related to the Swindon area, belonging to one of our members: This is a shelf plate from a signal box...
19/05/2026

Another little gem related to the Swindon area, belonging to one of our members: This is a shelf plate from a signal box that worked to Swindon, it would have been mounted underneath the block instrument or block bell.

It is most likely to have come from Bradford Junction, as that closed the most recently (1990) and did have these white plates under the block bells as this photo by Dave Hayball shows. It is likely that the sheep-dome bell nearest the camera is the one to Swindon.

It could also have come from a number of other boxes that fringed to Swindon Panel over the years, such as Uffington, Hay Lane, Bathampton Junction, Badminton, Swindon Loco Yard, and Sapperton Siding. All of these would have had a block bell to Swindon Panel either for train descriptions, emergency use, or in the case of Sapperton Siding for the brief period of Absolute Block working over the down line between the panel and Sapperton!

Do you have any artefacts from the Swindon area in your collection? We would love to see them!

We have been kindly sent this photo of the ground frame key from Wootton Bassett Engineer's Siding, belonging to a Swind...
19/05/2026

We have been kindly sent this photo of the ground frame key from Wootton Bassett Engineer's Siding, belonging to a Swindon Panel member.

This is the siding on the down side at Wootton Bassett Junction, more commonly referred to nowadays as Wootton Bassett Stone Terminal, as that is its main traffic.

The key was required to be inserted into the ground frame to unlock the levers. When not in use it was locked into an instrument, released from the panel signal box. When the key was detected and locked in the instrument the interlocking could be sure it wasn't in the GF and that the levers were therefore locked.

When required, the signalman would release the key (if the interlocking conditions allowed, ie it was safe for the points to be moved), and the shunter would remove the key from the instrument and insert it into the ground frame to free the levers. The key could not be removed from the GF until all the levers were normal again, thus preventing it being returned to the interlocking unless the points were normal and safe.

We don't seem to have a photo of the mechanical ground frame in situ, but we do have a photo of its ruined base, and the mechanical locking tray still in place.

Although the siding still exists and is still released by a ground frame, the points are motorised and the ground frame is now a button panel.

If you have any articles from the Swindon Panel area in your collection we would love to see them!

A wartime upgrade at Minety in connection with both Refuge Sidings being converted to Goods Loops.The Down Distant was m...
19/04/2026

A wartime upgrade at Minety in connection with both Refuge Sidings being converted to Goods Loops.

The Down Distant was moved out in preparation for the Home to be moved out and having a new bracket arm added for entry into the new loop.

A busy day in Swindon Panel in December 2005. 6B33 is the Theale to Robeston Oil Terminal conveying empty Murco fuel bog...
12/04/2026

A busy day in Swindon Panel in December 2005.

6B33 is the Theale to Robeston Oil Terminal conveying empty Murco fuel bogie tanks (which by some measures are more dangerous than full ones).

Swindon panel had hot axle box detectors on the Down Main at Bourton and the Up Main at Studley.

This was printed on the TOPS teleprinter in the panel, which also churned out performance and incident updates. It was the only way of obtaining information before the use of email and the installation of CCF/TMIS/etc in signal boxes (the equivalent information is now publicly available for free on sites like OpenTrainTimes.com!)

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Didcot Railway Centre
Didcot
OX117NJ

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