Northern Trains

Trainee Train Driver Apprenticeships

Described as an “excellent” entry by the PMA judges, the Trainee Train Driver Apprenticeship scheme launched by Northern Trains was driven by two major factors: a critical skills shortage caused by an ageing workforce and impending mass retirement, and the need to improve social mobility and workforce diversity in a region with significant economic disadvantage.

For Northern Trains, these pressures threatened service reliability, safety standards and the ability to support economic growth and a modal shift to rail as a way of addressing climate change. The transport company knew traditional recruitment pipelines were insufficient to replace retiring staff at the required scale or to attract talent from underrepresented groups, and knew it had to act to get on the right track. 

The large-scale apprenticeship scheme, described by the PMA judges as “robust” and “highly effective”, was supported by the opening of two dedicated training academies in Manchester (West) and Leeds (East). At the academies, apprentices begin with intensive classroom-based training in cohorts of no more than 12 at one of the academies, followed by depot-based practical training, where each apprentice is assigned an instructor and completes an additional 200 hours of supervised, hands-on instruction from experienced professionals. 

One of the major challenges was training complete novices, many without formal qualifications or sector knowledge. The company addressed this by creating a fully inclusive curriculum with no formal academic entry requirements, where individual needs are met through coaches who provide ongoing pastoral and academic support. The results speak for themselves: the programme has an 88.5 per cent retention rate, 100 per cent first-time pass rate at end-point assessment, an 88.5 per cent overall achievement rate and 100 per cent progression into qualified roles. Its impact on social mobility is also notable: Northern apprentices are on average 10 years younger than the industry average, while 32 per cent female apprentices is double the national rail industry average of 16 per cent. 

“This programme stands out for its accessibility and inclusivity, especially the removal of formal academic entry barriers and the support provided for learners requiring additional English and Maths development,” the PMA judges said, crowning it “a highly effective and sustainable apprenticeship initiative with significant organisational and social value”.