Anyone at a ‘career crossroads’ should consider a job in rail says Northern as it begins recruitment of 74 new train conductors for services in Greater Manchester & Yorkshire

25 August 2023

Northern is looking to recruit as many as 74 new train conductors for its bases in Greater Manchester and Yorkshire over the next 12 months – and the train operator is urging anyone that finds themselves at a ‘career crossroads’ to apply.

No previous rail industry experience is required as full training is provided through an apprenticeship at Northern’s academies in Leeds and Manchester city centres.

The roles in Greater Manchester will be based at either Manchester Piccadilly or Manchester Victoria, while those in Yorkshire will be based at either Doncaster, Leeds, Skipton or York.

The role comes with a salary of £29,000 once fully qualified and benefits including free train travel.

Initial training takes twelve weeks and the apprenticeship is complete in twelve months.

Lisa Leighton, people director for Northern, said: “The days when apprenticeships were just for school or college leavers are long gone - but that perception remains and it can be a barrier to more experienced people putting in an application.

“Lots of jobs have transferable skills that the rail industry can benefit from, so anyone that fancies taking their career in a completely fresh direction should give it go.

“Some of the people working on-board our trains today started their career in very different arenas, from the prison service and cabin crew to social care and financial services.

“No-one should think the railway ‘isn’t for them’ – it’s an industry with much to offer.”

Recruitment for the first of the 74 positions is already underway, with regular opportunities to apply as jobs are released between now and August 2024.

For more information and details of how to register for job alerts, visit: www.northernrailway.co.uk/careers.

In 2022, Northern was officially recognised by Ofsted as a ‘Main Provider’ of apprenticeships, a status that enables them to offer their industry-leading training services to other train operators and rail industry organisations.

Northern is the second largest train operator in the UK, with 2,500 services a day to more than 500 stations across the North of England.