I was reading a book by Neil Parkhouse and looking at a series of photographs of the historic station at Ashchurch which was demolished as part of the fall out from the cuts associated with Dr. Breeching. Apart from feeling a sense of dismay that the original station and its building, together with the branch-lines it served, has been lost for ever, I noticed a reference to a siding serving MOD Ashchurch and decided to investigate.

 

DE&S Ashchurch, known locally as "Ashchurch Camp", was the UK MOD's primary vehicle storage and distribution site for all types of armoured and soft-skinned vehicles, together with Royal Engineer bridges, boats and construction plant. The Centre was the only vehicle depot in the UK using Controlled Humidity Environments (CHE) for long-term vehicle storage.