MORE than 180 apprentices have joined up with railway maintenance teams across Britain after successfully completing the first year of Network Rail’s advanced apprenticeship scheme.

The first year of the three-year scheme is spent at Europe’s largest engineering training facility at HMS Sultan in Hampshire, where apprentices specialise in track work, signalling, telecoms and electrification and plant.

Lewis Ashton, 21, who has recently joined the track team in York, said: “There’s a good balance between younger and older apprentices and it’s good that we’re all in it together. I’m itching to get out on the track and start really working – I can’t wait to get stuck in.”