AN after school model railway club is being set up by a train enthusiast who will appear on Channel 5’s Great Model Railway Challenge.

Ray Pattinson from Hilperton who is a member of the West Wilts Model Railway Club has always had a love of model trains and wanted to share his passion with his local school, Staverton Primary.

After filming the programme Mr Pattinson saved some of the materials used, which the school will be able to use to minimise the costs of setting up the new club.

The club, which will run once a week from September, aims to produce a fully operational model railway over the academic year to unveil at the 2020 summer fete.

Mr Pattinson will be running the club on a Monday afternoon along with teachers.

He said: “This club will open up a world of modelling possibilities to children who otherwise would not get the chance to try this hobby due to space required and costs.

“We were allowed to take home anything that we could manage to carry from the show. There were boards and bits of track which I offered to the school.

“I said to the school I thought it would be quite a good idea and something different for the children to do for next year and there would be no cost to the school.

“They said they would be really interested so we said let’s do it.

“The whole idea is to get children a bit more engaged in subjects which they wouldn’t normally do.

“Railway modelling involves basic electrics, track planning, project management, landscaping and modelling techniques, all of which they generally wouldn’t get a chance to do in lesson time.

“We are also trying to get a bit of interest from some local engineering companies but that is still early days at the moment.”

Initially the club will be open to a maximum of 10 pupils.

Mr Pattinson added: “We want to start off and we can always expand and increase it if necessary.

“I imagine that it would be quite popular. I have two children that go to Staverton Primary, one who will be going to John of Gaunt in September but my other one will be going into Year Five so she will still be there. She is used to me being really interested in model railways but she is not that interested in it, but people I have mentioned it to seem very interested.”