Since I was small I have always had an interest in railways. I was the child who was obsessed with Thomas the Tank Engine. I used to go to Thomas events, I always went to the steam railways as a kid. It just wouldn’t have been Christmas without a Santa train. This love of trains stayed with me until well into my teens, and shortly before my 18th birthday, I finally made the decision to get involved and turn this love of trains into a productive hobby.

In September 2011 I went to a nearby narrow gauge railway, said I’d like to join and never looked back. I can categorically state that this was the best thing that I ever did. Since then I have done a huge variety of roles and gained a massive amount of experience.

Train Guard

My Main role, and the one that I’ve done for the longest is a train guard. Also known as conductor, train manager, and many other things depending on the train operator. The job of the guard has historically always been fundamental to the safe operation of a train.

I can’t speak for mainline train operations, or even other heritage lines. Different railways have different sets of rules, different operating practices and very different training regimens, but the fundamental is the same. The guard is responsible for the safety of the train. Most trains on my railway have a crew of 5: The Driver, Fireman & Engine Cleaner on the locomotive and the Guard and Assistant Guard in the guards van at the back of the train.

Duties vary from railway to railway. At my railway the guard controls the movement. The driver can only move with the authority of the guard, so if the guard is satisfied that the train is safe to run, then the driver can move the train. This does also include the operation of doors and managing passengers (and sometimes freight) for the safety of the train.

The other main responsibilities of the guard are timekeeping and revenue protection. A train guard keeps a log of the times, and alerts the driver and duty operations manager to any delays and the reasoning behind them.

Revenue protection on the mainline has always been a bone of contention, but on a heritage line it’s more of a tradition. The only issue I ever have with ticket checks is when someone books online and forgets to check in at the booking office! Usually they understand and are sorted quickly.

Guard Manager

A few years ago I was made deputy to the Guard Manager. It was a bit of a do-nothing job at the time, but it meant that I would be starting to gain some experience in people management skills and experience. The intention was that the previous guard manager would help me learn the existing processes and procedures so that in the long term the reins could be smoothly handed over to me. This didn’t quite happen as planned.

2020 rolls around and we are shut down for COVID. It was decided as part of our plan to reopen following this that all train crews would need further training and reassessment. Unfortunately my predecessor was not in a position to carry on after the first COVID lockdown so I had to take over, almost completely blind and without any of the materials that had been planned to be passed on. All of which were lost and had to be rebuilt from scratch.

My main responsibility as guard manager is to train and ensure the competence and ability of all the guards and assistant guards. To do this I have completely overhauled the training and competence management system that we were using and integrated it into the HOPS platform, bringing us in line with many other heritage railways.

The old training process was: Turn up and say that you want to be a guard, get dropped into the deep end as an assistant guard and told to learn as you go. Then when you feel that you’re ready to become a full guard you would do a written exam, followed by a practical exam. If you pass that you are a fully qualified guard.

If you have any experience of safety critical environments you can easily see the flaw in the old system. My predecessor started work on developing the new process, and started testing the first version, but sadly was unable to see it through to completion.

The current process is far more in depth. From turning up, the prospective guard would have a general volunteer induction where basic safety and rules are discussed, along with a history of the line. After that I would have a one to one discussion with the candidate about themselves, their background and why they want to become a guard. I then host a group training day where we go over the theory and practical elements of what is required. Then and Only then are they allowed to work as an assistant guard.

Further training is provided in an “On the Job” way, and as they gain experience and practice what they were taught they pick up the role and gain an understanding of what is required. When they feel that they are ready to become a full guard, I set them an online theory test which is to be completed in an open book style. If they pass this then we do a mock practical test, where we spend the day together and I observe their conduct, giving them pointers on what needs to improve and recognizing where they are succeeding. Then they do their final test, which is a full day where they are working solo under observation and have to demonstrate their knowledge and experience.

Doing this has increased the standard of the guards who are coming through and has done a huge amount to ensure the continued safety of the railway and all of our passengers. I also keep an eye on incident reports from other railways and look to see how the guidance from those incidents can be adapted to improve our own systems and processes. It is from being proactive in this way that we ensure that any incident that we do have is dealt with in the safest possible way.

Track Maintenance and Hedging

We can’t run trains on broken track, or track that is so overgrown that you can’t see it! Every Monday a team of hardy volunteers goes out to fix all the damage from all the trains, and replace worn out track elements. I work full time Monday to Friday so I can’t always be there to assist, but I am occasionally a member of the team.

Hedging trains tend to run once a month on a Saturday, wand it is almost exactly what it sounds like. A team will go out and cut back the hedges and vegetation, and recover it back to one of our engineering facilities to be disposed of in a safe and legal manner.