Apprenticeships with GWR

[Ryatay]

I am 16 years old. I am 17 in August today I applied for the customer service apprenticeship with GWR. Providing I get accepted past the talent pool, will I be an apprentice this August, since I applied a bit late
I am currently in college and I am going to drop out of the college course, provided I get accepted do you guys/ girls think I will be an apprentice this year? I'm just curious thanks very much

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 9 May 2025 ==

Slight correction I have Registered interest

 

[Horizon22]

I would very strongly advise against dropping out of anything - you do not have any confirmation of any offer and even a talent pool doesn't guarantee anything. Just wait and see how the process goes and then you can make your decision.

Provided I get accepted do you guys/ girls think I will be an apprentice this year?

It's impossible for us to know. I imagine it would start for Autumn 2025, but if you progress in the process you will find out more from GWR.

 

[Ryatay]

I wouldn’t drop out until I know I have a spot but im not sure if I will, I hope I get accepted and can start this year

 

[Azure_wolf32]

Hi there,

I was looking at potentially doing the customer service apprenticeship with GWR next year and wanted to know if anyone could answer any questions about it?

Has anyone done it, what is it like?
When do applications normally open and when does the role normally start?
Is there anything that would be good to do before my application?
How hard is it to get in?
What jobs can you go into with it, will it let you progress in the company eg becoming driver or manager?
Do any other TOCs offer anything similar?

If anyone can help I'd really appreciate it, thanks!

 

[Rab Smith]

Can't speak about GWR but in my company, the customer service apprenticeship is very good. They learn all different aspects of the operations side of the business and our engineering apprenticeship is also very good and varied.
I know of at least one customer service apprentice who is now a driver and one who's a conductor so go for it!

 

[notlegit]

Hi there,

I was looking at potentially doing the customer service apprenticeship with GWR next year and wanted to know if anyone could answer any questions about it?

Has anyone done it, what is it like?
When do applications normally open and when does the role normally start?
Is there anything that would be good to do before my application?
How hard is it to get in?
What jobs can you go into with it, will it let you progress in the company eg becoming driver or manager?
Do any other TOCs offer anything similar?

If anyone can help I'd really appreciate it, thanks!

Hello, I have done the customer service apprentice at gwr and I can say it’s extremely good. You do all the customer facing roles which are non safety critical. For example you do customer host, ticket office , customer assistance (customer assist on the platform) ,gateline and ticket examiner. It is the perfect way to get your foot in the door at GWR. And after 6 months you can apply for other jobs. It is the best way to try and network with other people whilst on the apprenticeship so when you apply for the full time job after your apprenticeship you would already know the people interviewing you. I was very fortunate to go straight from the apprenticeship straight to conductor. Applications normally are around every 3-4 months and they will be a multiple stations so I can say until I know what station you are local to. It is very easy to get in. The apprenticeship will help you into any customer facing role but manager and driver would be difficult to get after.

 

[Azure_wolf32]

Thanks very much for the advice, also wanted to ask I I would be allowed to do it as the nearest station to me that does it is exeter st davids and I am based in Barnstaple. The site does say you have to live within 60 minutes and the train to St davids can take a little over that however I have seen many gwr employees take that train home in the evening so I'm not sure if it counts or not

 

[notlegit]

Thanks very much for the advice, also wanted to ask I I would be allowed to do it as the nearest station to me that does it is exeter st davids and I am based in Barnstaple. The site does say you have to live within 60 minutes and the train to St davids can take a little over that however I have seen many gwr employees take that train home in the evening so I'm not sure if it counts or not

Yeah you should be fine. You can only work between 0700 and finish latest at 2000 so as long as there is a train to get you in at these times you should be fine.

 

[Mrfares13]

Hello, I have done the customer service apprentice at gwr and I can say it’s extremely good. You do all the customer facing roles which are non safety critical. For example you do customer host, ticket office , customer assistance (customer assist on the platform) ,gateline and ticket examiner. It is the perfect way to get your foot in the door at GWR. And after 6 months you can apply for other jobs. It is the best way to try and network with other people whilst on the apprenticeship so when you apply for the full time job after your apprenticeship you would already know the people interviewing you. I was very fortunate to go straight from the apprenticeship straight to conductor. Applications normally are around every 3-4 months and they will be a multiple stations so I can say until I know what station you are local to. It is very easy to get in. The apprenticeship will help you into any customer facing role but manager and driver would be difficult to get after.

Can you clarify what you mean by saying "its really easy to get in"
I applied this year at reading and was wondering what my odds are as I really want to get the apprenticeship.

 

[Mrfares13]

Hi all,

I recently applied for the gwr customer service apprenticeship. The interviews for the role start on the 15th of november and the deadline for applications closed on the 24th of october. I am yet to recieve an invitation and was wondering how late they're usually sent out. I would also like to ask how often they run the customer service apprenticeship in Reading as I'm very interested and would like to apply in the next intake assuming I wasn't succesful this year.

Thank you.

 

[Azure_wolf32]

Hi there,

I am an A level student who is interested in applying fo GWRs customer service apprenticeship. The current locations are in Plymouth, Taunton and maidenhead. the only issue is that a requirement is to live within 60 minutes of the station. I am currently based in barnstaple, which is fairly isolated and definitely out of the 60 minute range. I would be willing to relocate if I am successful but I don't know how to let them know that as to continue with the application, you have to confirm that you live within 60 minutes. I am very keen on the apprenticeship or any job in the rail industry but my only local station is at the end of a 60+ minute single track branch line that constantly shuts because of flooding so there are unlikely to be any opportunities going there, nor can I reliably commute to a bigger station within the time limit. I have already Emailed the apprenticeship team but they are yet to respond. What should I do?

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 28 Feb 2026 ==

I am attempting to apply anyway but will hold off on submitting for a couple of days.

 

[UnknownTrainee]

Hello! I have recently applied to be a GWR Apprentice in the maintenance sectors, Currently this is my first ever apprenticeship i was accepted for an assessment and interview on the same date and i have 18 days to prepare, i feel rather nervous and I'm not too sure what to revise on or research, I'm aware that safety first and following protocols is very important in this and my job, but what other stuff can i expect? what should i note down and prepare for? i'm very much excited and do not want to lose this opportunity.
And another point is that I completed my level 2 diploma for maintenance on cars not long ago but i do not have the physical evidence as of yet due to my college having delayed it (due to administrative issues), will this cause any issues?

Many Thanks!

 

[LCC106]

Well done! Don't worry too much about the physical certificate. You can explain the situation if necessary. Absolutely, safety first. Have examples of when you have had to work to rules/procedures and about how you have worked in a safe manner on cars, including use of Personal Protective Equipment. On a broader level, research the company, their values, routes, traction along with any awards they've received etc. I'm a driver but would think this would be a good starting point.

 

[UnknownTrainee]

Well done! Don't worry too much about the physical certificate. You can explain the situation if necessary. Absolutely, safety first. Have examples of when you have had to work to rules/procedures and about how you have worked in a safe manner on cars, including use of Personal Protective Equipment. On a broader level, research the company, their values, routes, traction along with any awards they've received etc. I'm a driver but would think this would be a good starting point.

Anything i should know during the assessment centre stage such as when i take the tests, what sort of structure will they follow? how advanced should my knowledge be in maths, mechanics, ect. i currently hold a level 4 in gcse maths so i am not sure if they expect much from me however ive been practicing my arithmetic maths in preparation, if you could please tell me more about your experience with the assessment centres i would really appreciate it, and thank you for the good wishes!

 

[bottletop]

Hi folks. I've got an assessment for a Customer Service apprenticeship with Great Western Railway in one week. Currently I've got a bit of prep for the interview written down and I've been writing out a plan for my assessment, outlining some specific things that have happened to me while volunteering in a customer-facing role on heritage buses (and outside that too) and how they should fit in with what GWR should (hopefully) want out of a successful applicant.

Are there any other tips that I should be taking on board? Really don't want to screw this up at all, and I want to be the absolute best I can be to make the most glowing impression on the assessors and interviewers.

Many thanks in advance!

 

[LCC106]

@UnknownTrainee I’ve been driving for nearly 15 years so am out of touch with assessment centres these days, so sorry! I think I’ve given you a good starting point though hopefully.

 

[UnknownTrainee]

@UnknownTrainee I’ve been driving for nearly 15 years so am out of touch with assessment centres these days, so sorry! I think I’ve given you a good starting point though hopefully.

No problem, thank you for the heads up, so far i've been progressing a lot, practicing my arithmetic skills and maths skills same with mechanical logic, i just hope to be prepared and ready ASAP. and happy soon to be 15 year anniversary of driving trains, i'm sure you must enjoy it a lot! many thanks again.

 

[UnknownTrainee]

Ive recently got more information, i have induction, and a practical group and mono excercise, anyone know what i could expect from this?

 

[UnknownTrainee]

Hello All.
As of recent I have completed my GWR assessment centre, I believe it went Okay to pretty good for me personally.
I was told by them however that on the 20th I would get my results back, however this has not happened.
I checked my account and im still registered for the apprenticeship talent pool, and i also emailed them.
During the email the main focus was my documents (they were not currently available on that day) and i also asked in the same email if im going to get an update soon, as it was past the deadline disclosed on the day i attended.
they did not address my question at all, only addressing my documents.
is this just a minor admin delay? or have i been disqualified? i am confused. cause if i was disqualified i would need to get an email back regardless.
if anyone else can maybe give me more insight i would be incredibly happy, as I've been left very confused for the past few days.

many thanks.

 

[LCC106]

If you’re still in the talent pool it’s looking ok. Railway recruitment is notoriously slow!

 

[UnknownTrainee]

If you’re still in the talent pool it’s looking ok. Railway recruitment is notoriously slow!

Thank you so much!!! i spent so much stress thinking about it these past few days!!! this reassured me alot.

 

[Airfrance_A318]

Hello All.
As of recent I have completed my GWR assessment centre, I believe it went Okay to pretty good for me personally.
I was told by them however that on the 20th I would get my results back, however this has not happened.
I checked my account and im still registered for the apprenticeship talent pool, and i also emailed them.
During the email the main focus was my documents (they were not currently available on that day) and i also asked in the same email if im going to get an update soon, as it was past the deadline disclosed on the day i attended.
they did not address my question at all, only addressing my documents.
is this just a minor admin delay? or have i been disqualified? i am confused. cause if i was disqualified i would need to get an email back regardless.
if anyone else can maybe give me more insight i would be incredibly happy, as I've been left very confused for the past few days.

many thanks.

I am also still waiting for results after 2 weeks for the Customer service apprenticeship so it seems they are just running behind

 

[UnknownTrainee]

I am also still waiting for results after 2 weeks for the Customer service apprenticeship so it seems they are just running behind

Fingers crossed we do well! thanks for reassuring me, seems to be just a delay from GWR.

 

[Zugaga]

Fingers crossed we do well! thanks for reassuring me, seems to be just a delay from GWR.

First time for everything!

 

[officewalla]

Fingers crossed we do well! thanks for reassuring me, seems to be just a delay from GWR.

This is not a delay and the company is not running behind. Recruitment takes forever and being in the talent pool is no guarantee of a quick turnaround. If there are no current vacancies in the company because the manpower requirement has lessened since you did your assessment, for example, then the pool is where they keep you until such a vacancy arises. This is how it works across all of the grades. Best advice for anyone in a talent pool is don't give up whatever you are doing until you have it in writing that you are being taken on. It might be a few days or a few years before the call comes; nobody excepting the recruitment team knows the answer.

 

[Airfrance_A318]

This is not a delay and the company is not running behind. Recruitment takes forever and being in the talent pool is no guarantee of a quick turnaround. If there are no current vacancies in the company because the manpower requirement has lessened since you did your assessment, for example, then the pool is where they keep you until such a vacancy arises. This is how it works across all of the grades. Best advice for anyone in a talent pool is don't give up whatever you are doing until you have it in writing that you are being taken on. It might be a few days or a few years before the call comes; nobody excepting the recruitment team knows the answer.

Yeah true, I would say the only difference here is the fact it is an apprenticeship and I was certainly told (can't talk for those in other test days obviously) specific dates/months that certain tasks/events would be carried out. Suggesting they have a bit more of a fixed timeframe. Hopefully I'm not sitting in a talent pool for months like you say, I do know a few rail staff that have!

 

[UnknownTrainee]

This is not a delay and the company is not running behind. Recruitment takes forever and being in the talent pool is no guarantee of a quick turnaround. If there are no current vacancies in the company because the manpower requirement has lessened since you did your assessment, for example, then the pool is where they keep you until such a vacancy arises. This is how it works across all of the grades. Best advice for anyone in a talent pool is don't give up whatever you are doing until you have it in writing that you are being taken on. It might be a few days or a few years before the call comes; nobody excepting the recruitment team knows the answer.

As Airfrance_A318 said, we were given fixed timeframes and dates, however im still in college and education, so i am not gonna drop out anytime soon just gonna wait

 

[bottletop]

As Airfrance_A318 said, we were given fixed timeframes and dates, however im still in college and education, so i am not gonna drop out anytime soon just gonna wait

The only timeframe I was given was our prospective start date if successful, which would be September. Although hearing back sooner rather than later is always beneficial!

 

[Airfrance_A318]

The only timeframe I was given was our prospective start date if successful, which would be September. Although hearing back sooner rather than later is always beneficial!

Were you on the Thursday assessment? I was told by the staff at Thursday pm we would be brought in for a medical within 2 weeks (which didn’t happen) but I presume they still want us to have a medical when they are ready.

 

[bottletop]

Were you on the Thursday assessment? I was told by the staff at Thursday pm we would be brought in for a medical within 2 weeks (which didn’t happen) but I presume they still want us to have a medical when they are ready.

Yes, purportedly the very last one they did. Assured we would hear back "very soon" but given it's been nearly three weeks I am starting to get anxious...