UK: Accrington & Rossendale College has installed a section of track for use as part of a railway maintenance and repair course which is designed to fast-track unemployed people aged 19+ into ‘well-paid, skilled careers for life’.
The course runs Monday to Friday over an eight-week period and includes classroom study at Lancashire Adult Learning in Brierfield and practical activities including changing sleepers at the site in Accrington. It includes a full set of Network Rail approved PPE, a Network Rail approved medical, and hand tool, first aid and manual handling training.
The programme has been running for just over a year using a site in Liverpool, with learners moving into employment with companies including McGinleys, Vital Rail and DF Brickwork. The college said the average starting salary for labour roles in the industry is £12-£15 per hour, with ‘great opportunities’ to develop.
‘This is a fantastic eight-week programme that enables people to move from unemployment, to full sustained employment in a very short space of time’, said Lisa O’Loughlin, Principal & CEO of the Nelson & Colne College Group on January 20.
