well as the railway, the future of three feral cats that live under the café at Kemsley was also threatened. It was announced at the National Railway Museum on 4 September 2008 that the railway had won the 2008 Small Group award from the Heritage Railway Association. The Heritage Railway Association supported a bid to secure the railway, overseen by Julian Birley of the North Norfolk Railway. Swale Borough Council were also reported as backing the scheme. At a full meeting of Swale Borough Council on 17 September, General Manager Tony James's speech resulted in the council unanimously voting to support the railway in its fight to survive. Mr James credited the Heritage Railway Association with influencing the decision of the council by their actions in giving the award. On 21 September, the railway was visited by Baron Faulkner, chairman of the Railway Heritage Committee, a statutory body which oversees the preservation of railway artefacts in the United Kingdom. Lord Faulkner asked that the railway write to the Secretary of State for Transport in a bid for powers to gain a Compulsory Purchase Order which will enable the railway to buy the trackbed. The line's "Farewell Gala" on 27–28 September was declared a massive success, with the timetable being abandoned after the first train on the Saturday and altogether on the Sunday. Around 600 passengers were carried each day. After pressure from local MP Derek Wyatt, a meeting was held on 7 October between the railway and M-real about the future of the railway. A screening of the film The Titfield Thunderbolt took place at Sittingbourne on 16 November to raise money for the fighting fund. In November 2008, the railway was contracted to remove asbestos pipes from a section alongside the railway. On 12 November, Triumph was used to haul the train, just days before its boiler certificate expired. It was revealed that the Government had been asked to use international diplomacy in the campaign to prevent closure. Lord Faulkner wrote to Lord Adonis asking for intervention at inter-Government level with the Finnish Government in an attempt to influence the decisions of Metsäliitto Group, who own M-real, to resolve the situation. At a meeting of Swale Borough Council on 12 November, representatives of M-real and their land agents refused to alter their position over the line. The preferred bidder for the land which the line occupies was to be