Post-16 Education - Joining the Railway as an Apprentice

[TrainTrackJack]

Hello all.
I’ve always been heavily interested in the UK Railscene and am now fast approaching the time where I need to sort out what to do after leaving school, and have held an aspiration to be in an apprenticeship with a TOC / FOC.
However finding one has been harder than I anticipated - DB Cargo for example won’t take under 18s and other companies won’t reply, even after several emails and phone calls, despite advertising Apprenticeships!
Another source of frustration is where I live - Malvern. Not exactly known for its railway background .

I was hoping that putting this on here, and letting all you brilliant people who are on this forum see this, that at least a handful of people could offer guidance, help or even let me know of one I could do!

Many thanks,
Jack

 

[ComUtoR]

An Apprentice what ? Train Driver, Fitter, Customer Service Agent, Cleaner ?

 

[Horizon22]

Please note the forum IS NOT a place for listings and people can not offer roles.

However I will allow people to point the OP in the right direction.

 

[TrainTrackJack]

An Apprentice what ? Train Driver, Fitter, Customer Service Agent, Cleaner ?

More towards the fleet maintenance - so fitter indeed.
Apologies for not making this clear.

 

[ComUtoR]

It's important to be specific so that bespoke advice can be offered. That said, some posts on the railway have age specific criteria which may be a barrier to entry.

I would start by getting a basic CV and cover letter organised so that you are ready to go if you see a position advertised. I haven't been post education for a while so my advice is to keep an eye on TOC websites for vacancies. Many TOCs have a dedicated career area and it may also be possible to sign up to job alerts.

I googled 'railway apprenticeships' and got quite a few hits. There are plenty of positions available out there and you just need to persevere.

 

[mrredrunner100]

Like others have said, do a CV and cover letter to get you ready and then it’s just slight tweaking when the time comes to apply.

I went in through an apprenticeship and joined when I was 17, I believe some as young as 16 but we had to be 18 to do certain parts such as drive trains. It was a great way in and I learned a lot and still with the company now

 

[the sniper]

...and have held an aspiration to be in an apprenticeship with a TOC / FOC.

Are you particularly uninterested in or unaware of the likes of Alstom, who maintain stock, as well as manufacturing it? A lot of train maintenance is going away from inhouse TOC operations with new units, in various places. I'd guess Alstom at Oxley would suit you, they seemingly advertised last year: https://centreforapprenticeships.co.uk/vacancy/1679031/