Former Prince’s Trust trainees start their careers with South Western Railway

Thursday 21st February 2019
Two of the latest recruits to join South Western Railway (SWR) are graduates of The Prince’s Trust and SWR’s customer service employability skills course. Harrison Jones (from Hendon) and Te-Jay Lawrence (from Cricklewood) will start working at Waterloo when they finish their initial training. Harrison will be inspecting tickets and Te-Jay will be dispatching trains.

Former Princes Trust trainees start their careers with South Western Railway

Commenting on this achievement Harrison Jones said:
“I’m buzzing to get my foot in the door and to progress my career with SWR. This is just the start, I want to get into management in the future.”

Te-Jay Lawrence added:
“It is exciting because it is a life changing experience. There are lots of opportunities at SWR to progress and to learn new skills.”

Glen Willie, SWR’s Inclusion and Diversity Manager said:
“I am delighted that Te-Jay and Lawrence have joined South Western Railway. They both did very well during their course and I’m sure that they will have successful careers with the railway. I hope to see many more trainees following in their footsteps and use the skills that they have learned to secure a job.”

Today’s job market is more competitive than ever. Getting that important first job can be a challenge particularly if you are young and come from a disadvantaged background. That is why South Western Railway has been working with the Prince’s Trust to run customer service employability skills courses for young people.

Each four-week vocational training course gives up to 14 young people a chance to develop the skills that will help them unlock their potential and build their confidence. The first two weeks of the course are spent developing and honing their skills including customer service, communication and conflict resolution. A further two weeks are then spent at stations putting what they had learned into practice.

To date, SWR has run two courses and a third one starts in May. Plans for a fourth course are already in place.

The Prince’s Trust helps young people to get their lives on track. It supports people who are unemployed and those struggling at school and at risk of exclusion.