Waltham Forest College, 1stinrail Ltd and Traxsydes successfully launched their Railway Engineering Track Apprenticeship Programme on Thursday 9 February 2012. The programme offers an unique learning opportunity for their Railway Engineering students, who are thrilled to have this calibre of work-based learning.
The Railway Engineering Track Apprenticeship Programme boasts access to a real track built on site at the College. Constructed by 1stinrail Ltd, it will provide a realistic understanding of Railway Track Maintenance. On the completion of their course, 1stinrail have pledged to give apprentices a guaranteed job interview and hopefully employment.
Specialists from the Railway Industry and th
e National Skills Academy for Railway Engineering also attended the launch, as well as the Apprentices themselves. One Apprentice, Rory Fairweather, expressed how excited he and his fellow students were to be on the programme and said: "We have already learnt a lot about what it takes to keep a rail network running. We all feel privileged to be on this programme because of the real hands on experience we are getting."
Invited guests attending the launch included The Worshipful the Mayor of Waltham Forest Councillor Geoff Walker and the London Mayoral Candidate Ken Livingston. Mr Livingston said: "I am delighted with what Waltham Forest College, Traxsydes and 1stinrail are doing to rebuild the concept of young people going into apprenticeships, getting skills and achieving their full potential in life."
Iain Elliott, Director of Business and International Development at the College, said: "The College is keen to deliver new programmes which provide students with the skills employers are looking for. This programme is a really good example of the private and public sector working together to achieve this goal."
Mary Roberts, Direct
or of Traxsydes, was delighted that the programme has started. She said: "It took us 18 months to develop this programme and I am very proud to see our apprentices start to make their way in the rail industry as readily as they have. They are studying for an NVQ Diploma in Rail Engineering Level 2 and will be the only apprentices in the UK to be certificated to work for London Underground and Network Rail."
The College currently has 10 Railway Engineering Apprentices and hopes to increase this to 24 within the next six months. If you would like to obtain more information about Apprenticeship courses available at Waltham Forest College please email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or call 020 8501 8501.
