Railway apprentice keeps family tradition on track

A railway apprentice has said his ambition to join the industry was driven by a desire to work alongside his father and brother.

Josh Haley, 20, from Leighton Buzzard in Bedfordshire, is training to become a rail engineer technician at the National Training Academy for Rail (NTAR) in Northampton.

As a second-generation railway worker, he was inspired by his father, Giles, 52, who works as the head of engineering safety and assurance, and his brother, Ben, 23, who is also a rail engineer technician apprentice.

"It's very much in the family and... seeing what they've achieved, it has great opportunities so it was always a drive for me to get there myself. I am quite proud to follow in my brother's and father's footsteps," he said.

NTAR, which opened in 2015, is part of the Siemens Mobility Limited group and has trained over 500 students through a mix of classroom theory and hands-on experience.

It offers apprenticeships including engineering fitter, engineering manufacturing technician, and rail engineering technician.

Josh added: "Being able to learn from [Giles] and feed off the great work he has done with Siemens, on multiple different projects, is a great influence. The same goes for my brother, the self-discipline, and the respect he has for the work he does is another great influence on me.

"It is always going to be good day when our shifts align, he is definitely the big brother that I will always look up to."

Giles Haley said he is "really proud" of both his sons, adding: "I don't come across Ben or Josh very much in a professional setting yet, but we meet up for lunch occasionally when I'm on site and some of my work does involve contact with their colleagues... so we are able to exchange updates."

Josh said he struggled in a traditional classroom setting after his GCSEs and felt he needed to be in a workplace environment.

"It was a no-brainer to do an apprenticeship, to get paid to learn from professionals and build my career early on," he said.

His role involves a variety of tasks, from testing systems to repairing trains, which he finds particularly rewarding.

"I think [apprenticeships] are quality… they give young people good exposure while retaining their education. I feel really looked after and can see myself in this job for a long time," he added.

Follow Northamptonshire news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.