Trainee Depot Driver - West Region in Penzance

GWR is the proud custodian of Brunel's railway - one of the most prestigious networks in the world. We have some of the newest trains in the country and exciting plans to extend our services. With more than one hundred million passenger journeys each year, we carry people to over 275 stations in the Southwest, from Cornwall and South Wales to London, passing through beautiful country and some of the UK's top tourist destinations. We are transforming the way people think about train travel, empowering our team of over 6,000 people from all different backgrounds to make it a great experience for our customers.

This Depot Driver role will give you a good grounding in a safe environment with awesome opportunities to develop your skills in train handling and driving before deciding whether or not you would like to progress to be a Mainline Train Driver later on in your career.

The role reports to the Driver Management Team at the relevant depot, i.e. Exeter, Plymouth or Penzance. Our Trainee Depot Drivers play an essential role in supporting our mainline train service, so that we can focus on creating a timely, relaxed, fast, efficient, and fun experience for our passengers. Working shifts of varying start times, including weekends and night shifts you will be responsible for train driving and other driver related activities, including preparing, driving and disposing of traction (train) units, safely and punctually, at our Engineering Depots; Exeter, Longrock at Penzance, or Laira at Plymouth, depending on which you apply for. Where applicable, when qualified, you'll also drive on the mainline up to designated signals between the depot and the affiliated station.

Are you able to follow instructions when the need for safety is always paramount? Do you have excellent communication skills and enjoy working within an environment with strict procedures and protocols? Do you have fantastic time management skills with the ability to work alone and focus on concentrating in a safety conscious environment? Do you enjoy assisting colleagues and customers in the interests of safety and customer service? If so, this role could be an excellent career opportunity for you!

As a minimum you must:

• Be at least 21 years of age to be accepted onto the training course, as this is an industry requirement.
• Live within 60 minutes travel time to the depot at the point of application, without using public transport when it is not available.
• Pass a full driver medical which includes passing hearing, sight, and colour vision tests (using the Ishihara plates).

You don't need to have previous Railway experience. We have colleagues from a wide range of industries and backgrounds. We do need you to bring your energy, enthusiasm and willingness to learn in a structured environment. Our training course requires your commitment to learning during an intensive period of training. There will be assessments throughout your training period, which will be based around both practical and classroom‑based learning, giving you support and guidance you will need, to pass the training to progress to a Qualified Depot Driver.

As this role is an important safety role, we have a stringent recruitment process, that includes various ability tests, that measure the key requirements needed for the role. But don't worry too much about this, we will send you Practice Test Materials, before we invite you to any ability testing events, so you will have plenty of time to practice for the tests.

We have opportunities to join our Talent Pool for Trainee Depot Drivers at Depots in Exeter, Penzance and Plymouth. If your application is successful and you pass the whole recruitment process, you will be placed in a Talent Pool pending available vacancies in 2027/28 and beyond in line with our Recruitment Policy.

The training salary rate is £33,594 per annum, rising to £50,018 when fully qualified. As well as a great team environment and comprehensive training, all GWR colleagues enjoy a range of benefits including defined benefit salary pension scheme, free rail travel across the GWR network for you and your family, company-sponsored healthcare plan and an Employee assistance programme.

This is our vision for providing an inclusive environment for all our colleagues, ensuring all candidates have an equal opportunity to access meaningful employment. We value our differences such as age, gender, LGBTQIA+, ethnicity, religion, and disability. We maintain a zero tolerance towards any form of prejudice towards our colleagues, customers, and future talent. We celebrate and encourage diversity of thought, progressive ways of working and seeing all our colleagues grow and thrive.

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