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Thursday 18 Sep 2025

Railway training centre taking shape as public vote to decide name enters final week

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Eastern

| Eastern: East Coast

Progress is being made on creating an exciting new railway training centre in Doncaster – with a week left in the public vote to decide its name.

The former National College for High Speed Rail is being brought back into use by Network Rail, in partnership with City of Doncaster Council.

The three-storey centre, in Carolina Way near Lakeside, will provide operational training, education and development for up to 1,000 rail workers from across the industry each year.

Recent weeks have seen progress on the conversion, which is creating a total of 21 classrooms – seven on the ground floor and 14 upstairs.

The past few days have seen the arrival of signalling simulators – both the traditional lever-pull versions and newer models featuring technology like visual display units.

The centre will be used for Network Rail and wider industry training, with opportunities to link with existing educational provision and a focus on STEM learning (science, technology, engineering and maths).

Network Rail is holding a public vote to decide the name of the college from a shortlist of options which all celebrate Doncaster’s rich railway heritage.

We’ve had thousands of votes so far – and there’s just one week left to make your choice from the following:

• Duddington & Bray House - recognising the vital contributions of Doncaster locals Joe Duddington (engine driver) and Tommy Bray (fireman), who achieved a world speed record for steam of 126mph in 1938 with the Mallard locomotive, built in Doncaster.

• Flying Scotsman House - honouring the legendary locomotive built at Doncaster Works in 1923, which became the first steam locomotive officially recorded reaching 100mph and remains one of the most famous trains in the world.

• The Corridor - acknowledging the famous East Coast Main Line corridor – one that runs through Doncaster, connecting London to Scotland.

• The Gresley Institute - in tribute to Sir Nigel Gresley, the brilliant chief mechanical engineer who designed both Mallard and Flying Scotsman at Doncaster Works, revolutionising steam locomotive design.

Click here to vote for your favourite name. 

Laura Smith, Network Rail's programme manager for the new training centre, said: “It’s fantastic to see the transformation of the Doncaster site progressing so well.

“This new college will be a cornerstone for training the next generation of rail industry professionals, and we’re proud to be working with the City of Doncaster Council to bring it back into use.

“We’ve already had thousands of votes in the public naming poll, and with just one week to go, we’re encouraging everyone to get involved and help us choose a name that reflects Doncaster’s proud railway heritage.”

Voting will officially close at midnight on Thursday 25 September, with the chosen name set to be revealed in October.