Monday 3 Oct 2011
MORE APPRENTICES GET ON TRACK FOR SUCCESS IN BRIGHTON AND THREE BRIDGES
- Region & Route:
- | Southern
Promising apprentices have begun a three-year programme to become skilled maintenance engineering technicians at Network Rail after the company received nearly 8,000 applications for its award winning advanced apprenticeship scheme – and five of them will be working in Brighton and Three Bridges.
The apprentices will spend a year training alongside the Royal Navy at Europe’s largest engineering training facility at HMS Sultan in Hampshire. Here they will learn both the technical skills required to work on the railway and develop leadership and teamwork behaviours which will make them more effective in their roles.
The apprentices will continue their training for two further years on-the-job at depots in Brighton and Three Bridges, returning to HMS Sultan for additional courses. They will specialise in track, signalling and telecoms.
Steve Featherstone, director of maintenance at Network Rail said: "Our apprentices will be part of a 34,000-strong team helping three million people get to work and home again to their day or night out, to their holiday or to their university or school. It’s challenging, rewarding and of great value to Britain and its economic success.
“In the future we expect the railway to become more popular and we have big plans for making it more reliable, efficient and better value for money; our apprentices will play a big role in that.”
He added: “We now have the building blocks in place so that beyond their apprenticeships, our engineers can undertake a higher national certificate, a foundation degree and then a full degree in engineering. They can earn while they learn and go as far as their aptitude, attitude and ambition can take them.”
Andy Wheeler from Horsham is one of the apprentices joining the Brighton team with a specialism in electrification and plant. Revealing why he applied to join the scheme, he said: “After leaving the royal engineers I was keen to return to an engineering based occupation. I researched the various apprenticeships available and realised working on something as important as the national infrastructure would be a wise choice. I looked into a career with Network Rail and the number of possible career paths made for an attractive prospect with far more promising opportunities than any of the others I had looked at.
“I had always been interested in studying for an electrical qualification and upon discovering I could with Network Rail there was simply no hesitation in applying for the scheme.”
Another apprentice starting work at Brighton is 21-year-old Andrew Fox from Newport, Shropshire. Commenting on what he has learnt so far that will help him in the workplace, he said: ““Since becoming an apprentice I have learnt how to be a team player. It has shown me how to develop managerial skills and improve relationships within the team. I have also learnt new skills academically and furthered my electrical knowledge, learning new aspects I hadn’t even touched on during college courses, and safety measures I had never even considered before.”
Notes to editors
This year’s apprentices are not available for interview at this stage in their training.
About the Network Rail Advanced Apprenticeship Scheme
A three-year programme that equips you with the skills and experience to become a maintenance engineering technician.
There are seven engineering programmes: track, signals, electrification and plant, signal design, property works, mechanical locking and telecoms. Each one gives you the chance to work in a critical area of the business, where your development will continue beyond the three years of the scheme.
Paid learning
In the first year, apprentices will be paid £8,400 + £1,150 when they successfully finish the year; the salary will rise to £11,750 in the second; and £14,000 in the third.
Network Rail will also feed, pay for accommodation and provide the clothing and personal protective equipment that they need in the first year – including safety boots, cargo trousers and a fleece. There are plenty of holidays: 28 days plus bank holidays in total. Network Rail will pay for apprentices to travel home for long weekends and Christmas, Easter and summer holidays.
Qualifications
After three years, apprentices will have the qualifications (NVQ, BTec and ILM (Institute of Leadership and Management)) and skills to develop a long-term career with Network Rail. Many apprentices complete their first year and soon start to think about their career options – and many set their sights on becoming technical officers, team leaders or managers. There are even further opportunities to study a foundation degree for those who demonstrate the commitment and ability.
We will begin recruiting for 2012 in January. Further information can be found at http://careers.networkrail.co.uk/apprentices
Contact information
Passengers / community members
Network Rail national helpline
03457 11 41 41
Latest travel advice
Please visit National Rail Enquiries
Journalists
Network Rail press office - South East route
020 3357 7969
southeastroutecomms@networkrail.co.uk
About Network Rail
We own, operate and develop Britain's railway infrastructure; that's 20,000 miles of track, 30,000 bridges, tunnels and viaducts and the thousands of signals, level crossings and stations. We run 20 of the UK's largest stations while all the others, over 2,500, are run by the country's train operating companies.
Usually, there are almost five million journeys made in the UK and over 600 freight trains run on the network. People depend on Britain's railway for their daily commute, to visit friends and loved ones and to get them home safe every day. Our role is to deliver a safe and reliable railway, so we carefully manage and deliver thousands of projects every year that form part of the multi-billion pound Railway Upgrade Plan, to grow and expand the nation's railway network to respond to the tremendous growth and demand the railway has experienced - a doubling of passenger journeys over the past 20 years.
Follow us on Twitter: @networkrail
Visit our online newsroom: www.networkrailmediacentre.co.uk