Rail Week Begins!

Monday 5th October marks the start of Rail Week, an initiative in partnership with the UK organisation Young Rail Professionals to inspire and encourage involvement in the railway industry through talks, events and visits.

This year, as part of a virtual Rail Week, a number of exciting and engaging events are taking place throughout the week - including a fantastic competition hosted by us here at We Are Railfans which ends this Wednesday 7th October. More information on that can be found here.

Highlights of Rail Week 2020 are listed below and include virtual tours of rail operator Freightliner's depots in Leeds and Crewe, as well as interviews with Network Rail employees detailing 'A Day in the Life of a NR Engineer'. Joining each event can be done via the Rail Week website and some events will be made available to view afterwards. DB Cargo, the Rail Delivery Group (RDG), Muslims in Rail and Community Rail Lancashire are also getting involved:

(All times BST)

Monday 5th October

• Start of Rail Week!
• DB Cargo Week of Events
• Day in the Life of a NR Engineer: Day 1 (1100 - 1130)
• IntoRail Social Media Campaign

Tuesday 6th October

• Day in the Life of a NR Engineer: Day 2 (1100 - 1130)
• YRP / Jacobs - Inclusion and Diversity in Rail (1215 - 1300)
• Freightliner Virtual Depot Tour, Leeds (1400 - 1430)

Wednesday 7th October

• Day in the Life of a NR Engineer: Day 3 (1100 - 1130)
• RDG - How the Railways are Powered (1330 - 1415)
• Gareth Dennis' #RailNatter: Skills Gap? What Skills Gap? (1900 - 2000)

Thursday 8th October

• Day in the Life of a NR Engineer: Day 4 (1100 - 1130)
• Muslims in Rail: Working in Rail and Practicing my Faith (1230 - 1330)
• Freightliner Virtual Depot Tour, Crewe (1400 - 1430)

Friday 9th October

• Mind the Language Gap! (0900 - 1200)
• Day in the Life of a NR Engineer: Day 5 (1100 - 1130)
• The Right Track to Diversity (1100 - 1200)
• Rail Human Library: How does your role make a difference to people travelling on the railway? (1300 - 1700)
• RDG - Routes into Rail (1330 - 1500)

The Rail Week website also gives further information about their educational resources and photos from previous years, when depot tours and interactive events took place in person. You can also get involved with Rail Week via social media by following IntoRail, Young Rail Professionals, Network Rail and other Rail Week partners mentioned above.