Published on: Friday, 8 July 2016
Last updated: Tuesday, 20 June 2017
Fifteen pupils from Thomas Lord Audley School in Colchester spent a day at Abellio Greater Anglia’s Stratford Academy.
The Year 9 pupils took part in a range of activities, made their own balloon-powered locomotives, and even had a go at driving a train on Abellio Greater Anglia’s driver simulator.
Events were running up and down the country from June 27 – July 3 as part of Rail Week, a national initiative which is being trialled for the first time. Rail Week is a collaborative activity being delivered by the rail sector and led by Young Rail Professionals to encourage more people to consider a career on the railway and to find out more about the industry.
Urmish Patel, Head of Resourcing at Abellio Greater Anglia, said: “As part of our business in the community work, we are working with Thomas Lord Audley School where we provide interview skills and CV writing sessions, so we felt this was a natural step in getting students to understand roles on the railway. At the start of the day we asked them if they had thought of a career in rail and we only had a few hands up, however, by the end of the day when we asked the same questions again all hands were firmly in the air.
“The rail industry is an exciting place to work and offers a wealth of opportunities and benefits to those who choose to explore the various paths it has to offer. We hope to welcome the students back soon.”