Follow The Steam
The 2024 Open Season
Join us on Saturday 18th May for our Teddy Bear Picnic event! Bring a picnic lunch and your favourite stuffed animal to Crofton Beam Engines and enjoy lawn games, teddy bear crafts, songs, games and stories. For more information please click the button below.
Lots of Space for Picnics in the Grounds
Visitors are welcome to bring a picnic to enjoy overlooking the canal and railway on our open days. Please note our picnic areas are not under cover. Access to the site is via the main gate opposite the car park. No access from the lower canal entrance at Lock 60 due to ongoing works by the Canal and River Trust.
refreshments on steaming days
While you are at Crofton on a Steaming Day don’t forget to visit the pop-up refreshment tent. We will be serving tea, coffee and a variety of soft drinks as well as cakes, biscuits and other delights to keep you sustained while visiting the engines and meeting our wonderful volunteers. Open 10:30 to 16:00. All proceeds from the pop-up will be donated to Crofton, helping ensure it’s future.
Get Involved
Crofton is powered by volunteers! Come and join our friendly team at Crofton Beam Engines, and help to show our wonderful engines and beautiful site to our visitors. We have a wide range of volunteer roles, so there is a task waiting for you whatever your background. Roles include Front of house and tour guides, Engineering, Ground work, Building Maintenance, and Visitor Services.
Explore Crofton’s Engines
We have two engines at Crofton, these and the rest of the site are looked after by a team of dedicated volunteers and staff. They do that to preserve this amazing landmark from the past in order that you, and future generations, can see how our great, pioneering engineers tackled early developments in motive power and pumping technology. Click the buttons to learn about these brilliant engines that give us our name.
Winter Works Open Days 2024/25
2024/25 Winter dates to follow.
We will be pleased to welcome visitors for an opportunity to look “behind the scenes” at our winter maintenance and to speak with our knowledgeable volunteers.
Free entry to the Beam Engines, though donations to our Chimney Appeal are welcome.
Latest News
Drive It Day
Drive It Day at Crofton Beam Engines Sunday April 21 Crofton Beam Engines was a venue for Drive It Day. Classic cars from all decades were welcomed to Crofton. Some of our volunteers also took the opportunity to bring along and display their own classic vehicles. Drivers taking part had a free pass around the…
Annual Boiler Steam Test
Annual Boiler Steam Test We recently had our annual boiler safety test inspection. It is carried out by an independent boiler safety inspector. The test is to make sure our boiler meets all the safety requirements. Boiler Steam Test Part of the test is to check that the steam safety valve on the boiler is lifting…
Crofton Beam Engines Chimney Repairs
Chimney Repairs The Grade 2 listed chimney at Crofton has not required any repairs since 1996, until now. In January 2023, we experienced torrential rain followed by a period of sub-zero temperatures. As a result, expansion of ice crystals within the mortar and brick had caused damage to the chimney, pointing and brickwork. The west…
Visit by narrowboat
and stop by on the
Kennet & Avon Canal
A Word from our Patron Phil Harding
“I’ve known Crofton all my life and still enjoy visiting this special place. Crofton is important both as part of Wiltshire’s social history and internationally as a working steam pumping station”