NEW apprenticeships have been announced for Siemens Mobility Ltd's world-class rail manufacturing facility.

The 12 trainee roles will be among the first of up to 700 jobs to be created by the development in Goole, along with a further 250 during the construction period and an additional 1,700 UK supply chain roles.

New Tube trains for the London Underground will be built at the East Yorkshire facility.

The apprenticeships announcement was made as Mike Brown, London’s Transport Commissioner, visited the Goole site.

Mr Brown and Siemens Mobility executives also met students at Goole Academy to discuss the career opportunities that will be made available by the project.

Applications are now open for the three-year, Level 3 rail engineering technician apprenticeship positions.

To apply, visit https://jobs.siemens-info.com/jobs/203153

It follows the news last week that Network Rail was also recuiting 60 signallers, including various roles in the Rail Operating Centre in York (ROC) on the edge of the York Central site.

So what can successful candidates expect?

The apprentices start in September with the first year at college, developing engineering knowledge and competencies.

In their second year, they will spend one day a week at college and four days a week on placement at Siemens Mobility traincare facilities, building up their practical skills and experience.

Their third year will be split between working full-time at Siemens Mobility’s new Goole facility for six months, followed by a six-month placement at the company’s trains factory in Vienna, Austria.  

How significant are these apprenticeships?

The launch of the apprenticeships is part of Siemens Mobility’s strategy to develop a pipeline of future talent for the new Goole facility, supported by high-quality training programmes. It also illustrates Siemens Mobility’s commitment to apprenticeships, with around 150 people in such roles in the UK and a further 400 in other Siemens operations across the country.

What will actually be happening at the Goole site?

Siemens Mobility is investing up to £200m in the facility, where new Tube trains for London’s Piccadilly line will be built under a £1.5bn contract, replacing the existing 1970s fleet.

The new trains will provide increased capacity and an improved passenger experience with wider doors and longer, walk-through carriages.     

A detailed planning application for the development, at the Goole 36 enterprise zone site, was put forward to East Riding of Yorkshire Council last month following the granting of outline planning consent in July 2019.

What happens next?

Pending approval, construction is expected to start by early summer, with the first phase of manufacturing facilities operational by 2023, when the first 12 apprentices will complete their training.