The Talyllyn Railway has launched a new initiative to continue to encourage young volunteers to take part in the day-to-day running of the railway.

The new scheme is called the Under Sixteen Training and Development Programme and consists of four weekends each year, of two to three days each.

The first of these weekends took place over the May Bank Holiday weekend and there were 14 participants.

A further three weekends took place, two during the busy August timetable and another during the autumn half-term.

The young members enjoyed a programme provided by a training co-ordinator and supported by input from inspectors from all participating departments.

These included supervised visits to explore and understand traffic operations together with classroom, group and online training to cover the Railway Operational Handbook and Rulebook.

“As well as social activities there is an active learning syllabus covering the role of guards, station staff and engine cleaners and it is anticipated that those attending the whole course will, by the age of 16, be at a stage where they will be able to engage directly and positively with the practical aspects of training, making it possible to progress very much more rapidly to qualification in their chosen area of operational activity,” a Talyllyn spokesperson explained.

All 14 participants from the pilot weekend signed up to continue with the course together with many more who have indicated a desire to join the scheme.

Further training weekends in August and October saw a much higher uptake as the scheme became more widely known.

Chairman Jon Mann said: “It is fantastic to see these young people becoming involved in preserving our heritage, learning traditional skills, and working so well and responsibly in an adult environment.”

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