Group Bookings
Planning a party?? visiting the wildfowl?? why not round off the day by chartering the railway.
The Operators of Bentley Miniature Railway can, on request, normally provide a Charter Service for School Parties, Playgroups, Birthday Parties and other organised Groups who may visit Bentley Wildfowl and Motor Museum on days when the Railway does not operate Our charter service is available between the hours of 12 noon and 5 p.m. but times may be varied by agreement with organisers when placing a booking. Bookings must normally be made at least 3 weeks in advance of your visit.
Costs:
The following is the 2011 scale of charges for our Charter Service:
- Passenger numbers not exceeding 40 - Price £40
- Passenger numbers 41- 60 - Price £50
- Passenger numbers 61-100 - Price £60
- Passenger numbers 101-150 - Price £80
- Passenger numbers in excess of 151- Price £100
Please Note:
The rates above reflect the provision of adequately trained Staff and the operation of the Locomotives
and rolling stock for your Group’s use.
Your party will have unlimited use of the railway for the duration of their visit.
Where the party is made up primarily of children, the passenger numbers shown above ONLY refer to the number of children in the Party. We will not make any charge for teachers or other adults in the party. If, however, the party is made up primarily of adults, they will all be chargeable.
Cancellation - No charge will be levied if the booking is cancelled 24 hours or more prior to the charter. Any cancellation by the organisers within 24 hours will be invoiced for payment. Bentley Miniature Railway reserve the right to cancel a charter if there is heavy rain or for other operational or staffing difficulties. This is for safety reasons and the decision by our Duty Manager is final. However, if bad weather does not affect our safety systems and you still wish your group to travel then the charter may go ahead. If the charter is cancelled in these circumstances then no charges will be made.
Locomotives
Bentley Miniature Railway operates Battery Electric, Petrol and Steam Locomotives. For passenger numbers below 40 we will normally provide a Battery Electric/Petrol locomotive. Depending on the arrangements made for the Group’s day at Bentley, for parties above 40, we may provide a Battery Electric/Petrol locomotive or a Steam Locomotive at our discretion. Please note that, although we will always try and meet an organisers wishes, our Locomotives are privately owned and it is therefore not possible to guarantee to provide any particular Locomotive.
Safety
A Senior member of our Staff is appointed as Duty Manager whenever the railway is operating and he is responsible for all aspects of the days operation . He will make himself known to the Party Organiser(s) when they arrive and any concerns should be discussed with the Duty Manager.
We take safety very seriously and ensure that our Locomotives and Rolling Stock are properly maintained and certified (where necessary) and that all Operating Rules are followed.
School parties and playgroups must provide one adult per carriage whilst children are being carried on the train. We reserve the right to remove from our trains any passenger who, in the opinion of the Duty Manager, behaves in an unacceptable manner.
Teachers/organisers are encouraged to visit the railway on a public operating day so that a Senior member of our Operations Staff can answer any questions they may have about the operation of the railway.
Organisers of Groups containing passengers who have limited mobility or other special needs are strongly advised to visit the railway before making a booking to ensure that our carriages are adequate for their special needs. If it is not convenient to visit during normal operating times, visits can be arranged at other times if necessary - please telephone Mr MI Thomas to arrange.
To Request a Charter
Please complete all of the fields on the form below:
We will contact you within 5 working days of receiving your email to discuss your arrangements. Alternatively, you may telephone the Party Booking Co-Ordinator, Malcolm Thomas on 01435 862886 to discuss your requirements
Please ensure that you provide a contact telephone number so that we can contact you to discuss any points of concern.
Please Note
We are an entirely voluntary organisation and there may be occasions when we are unable to provide an adequate number of trained staff for the safe operation of the railway. On these rare occasions it will, regretfully, be necessary to decline a booking.
