Mark Gardner

Said the following about Leeds Instructor Drivers:

“The Leeds Driver Instructor team have delivered one of the largest, if not THE largest, single pieces of in depot training in the whole of Northern if not the whole of the country!

They have between them ensured that since the beginning of 2016 85 trainee drivers have had comprehensive depot experience and traction training. All delivered on time, professionally and with more enthusiasm than you can shake a stick at!

Each and every one of them has gone above and beyond in ensuring the trainees in their charge have been well prepared to not only pass examinations but take the their next step in to the real world of train driving.

Bad weather, lack of traction, equipment failures and all the other day to day issues a TOC faces have not got in the way of them giving trainees a great learning experience. They face all their challenges head on and positively. They proactively look for ways to continuously improve on the service they deliver and go that extra mile when necessary. Be it staying over their day to ensure a traction unit they have used gets back into public service or coming in on a day off to assist a trainee who is struggling or needs a confidence booster.

But don’t take my word for it. Here are some hard facts on what they have delivered in the past 20 months….

14 depot experience courses

42 traction courses (DMU and EMU)

400+ practical assessments

322 route briefs for the trainees that have passed out so far... with a further 273 to go

And this doesn’t include the route assessments that follow each brief, the day job of briefing established drivers as they move through the links, safety briefs and all the other informal contacts they have. Tot all that up and we are looking at 1000s of hours of great work!

On top of this they get involved in projects within the depot at Leeds. They suggest ideas for how we can improve operational safety – such as the depot safety of the line board we now use, how we can improve the way we work – taking it upon themselves to update and streamline our training materials, and how we can better engage with our drivers – they now publish a newsletter for the minder drivers and operate a social media forum called Bang Road.

This is a team of instructors who really do function as a team. They know what each other’s strengths and weaknesses are and use that knowledge effectively. They support each other and push each other to continually improve. The more experienced instructors guide and mentor those who are new into the role and take time out to ensure they feel part of the team.

The results of their dedication, professionalism and enthusiasm has been that the business is able to pass record numbers of trainee drivers out on time and do so with consistently high standards. And where there has been the odd hiccup the instructors have been there to support and give additional time and training to those individuals. Giving them the best possible second chance.

The high standard of driver we see at the end of the training programme is a reflection of the hard work they put it. Their attitude and behaviours act as a great example to not just the trainee drivers but the rest of the depot.

Finally they have made my job as their line manager an absolute pleasure, and without their work ethic and flexibility I would not have been able, quite simply, to deliver on my job!“