The days of oily rags are long gone.

BACK in the day every small boy dreamt of being a train driver and every small girl wanted to be a nurse. In these, more enlightened, times many boys now take up nursing as a career, so why aren't more girls being tempted by the railways?

Research commissioned by Network Rail suggests those aged seven to nine think engineering is dirty and messy, but liked the idea of doing something with a greater social purpose, while girls aged 10 to 12 seem to respond positively to female role models in engineering although they were still worried that it was dangerous and they weren’t strong enough.

To dispel such worries the company staged Switch On at its state-of-the-art operations and training centre in York last Friday for girls in those age groups, hoping it would encourage more females to take up engineering when they leave school.

Those attending got the chance to try their hand at mastering the art of signalling, putting practical thinking to the test and seeing how they overcome obstacles such as broken down trains or fallen trees on the line.

Teenage girls get used to wearing hard hats and welding goggles during an open day held at the Network Rail Training Centre encouraging girls to consider careers as railway engineers. Picture: Anna Gowthorpe.

Also on hand were role models, such as Jenna Oldroyd, a signalling trainer, and the ultimate inspirational figure, Kamini Edgley, who is Network Rail's chief mechanical and electrical engineer.

She says promoting STEM (science, technology, engineering and maths) subjects is everyone's duty, which is why events like this are so important.

"The stereotypes are dated and it's down to all of us to change that," says Kamini. "Days like this allow young people to see how exciting engineering can be. This is the right age to show them the opportunities on offer, because the world is their oyster and in a big company like Network Rail there's something for everyone."

Kamini goes on to say perception plays a big part in what young people choose to do and those perceptions are changing.

"Engineering is not just about oily rags and fixing things, people are realising that it's a lot broader, " she says. "Take design which is the beginning of the life cycle. You need to come up with the right product, then you build it and finally use it."

A good point. Young people are forever using their iPads and mobiles so aren't they effectively engineers already?

Teenage girls get used to wearing welding goggles during an open day held at the Network Rail Training Centre encouraging girls to consider careers as railway engineers. Picture: Anna Gowthorpe

Ten year old Skye Waddington, from Acomb certainly thinks so and during the morning came up with some brilliant ideas to make the network more efficient. Sadly she made us swear to secrecy.

"I like building with Lego and if I worked here I'd want to design things," says Skye. "I've already got an idea to improve the way iPads are used on the railway and how to make signal boxes better. But if they want to know what they are, it will cost them a job."

Switch On may have been a girl's day out but nine year old Tim Mills was so desperate to come that organisers didn't have the heart to say no. And in the signalling simulator he came up with the question of the day.

"If all the boxes are being computerised, what would happen if all the electricity in the country suddenly broke down," Tim asked Jenna.

"Engineering is all about asking what if and coming up with solutions," she replied, quick as a flash. "That's why they have generators."

Flora Bannister, 12, from South Bank came along after her mum had spotted an article in The Press inviting people to apply for places.

"She thought I'd enjoy it and she was right. I like digging in the garden, I don't mind getting my hands dirty and I think girls can do whatever boys can do," says Flora.

"Watching the welding was fun with all the sparks flying. We got to wear the goggles, but I wish we could've had a go."

Alas no. Even at this age safety was the key message and Jenna told the girls about some of the lesser known measures that 'what if' thinking has come up with.

"She told us about the little caps they put on the tracks during engineering work," says Flora. "If there's something wrong they explode when a train runs over them. When the driver hears it he knows it is the signal to stop.

"I also learned that there are 24,000 trains running every day, all controlled by computers, but they still have little flags for when there are power cuts."

If they learned nothing else at Switch On, the girls, and of course Tim, surely came away with the distinct impression that engineering is anything but dull, dirty and messy.

Standalone quote: "Engineering is not just about oily rags and fixing things." Kamini Edgley, Network Rail's chief mechanical and electrical engineer