Volunteering
By far the society's greatest contribution to the railway is through the volunteers – the unpaid staff – without whom, the railway would not be able to run as it does today. Numerous roles are available, to suit every age and all levels of activity, ranging from train guard, to staffing the museum; roles that involve working as part of a team (e.g. Permanent Way), to those who prefer more autonomy (e.g. gardening; station maintenance). All are important in supporting what many believe is ‘the best little railway in the world’! Below is a list – not exclusive – of various roles.
Working on the railway can be great fun, so come and join the team! Contact the Volunteer Liaison Officer to find out more details of any of these opportunities.
Don't forget that if you are volunteering on the railway, you can stay in the Society accommodation, Heywood House.
Train operations:
Guard
Every train that operates on the railway has a guard, and most of these are volunteer members of the Society. In the height of summer up to five guards are needed every day, but at least two guards are needed throughout the daily service.
Being a guard on the railway can be both a challenging and rewarding job. A typical day will see you report to Ravenglass in time to ensure the cleanliness of your carriages and also assist in any shunting that may be required. There is always time for a cup of tea before commencing your first trip of the day. As the guard you will have collected your ticket machine from Ravenglass booking office along with other essential equipment prior to checking your passengers' tickets. Another of the guard's duties at Ravenglass (and Dalegarth) is to assist the driver in coupling/uncoupling the engine as well as watering it. Once all the passengers are on board you will check the signal is off, blow your whistle and set the train off.
On your journey up the valley you will ensure that the train stops at the intermediate request stops as required and also sell tickets to passengers wishing to board. You are also expected to keep the train running to time wherever possible and ensure that it is operating safely (e.g. your train passes other trains at the correct locations). In addition you also perform an important customer service function in providing information on everything from main line connections to the history of the railway.
A typical Guarding turn will consist of either two or three round trips in a day. At the end of your last trip you may be required to help shunt the carriages into the carriage shed before returning to the Booking Office to cash in your day's takings.
As you might expect for such a responsible role, full training is given which not only includes the above duties but also covers such things as the radio control system and the workings of the locomotives. It is worth noting that virtually all the railway guarding roster vacancies are filled by volunteers.
Steam loco driver
Diesel loco driver
Shunter
Guards with sufficient experience are able to apply, through the society, for a position as a volunteer driver. A selection programme runs periodically and initially covers shunting and diesel driving, with potential also to progress to steam driving. Currently all of the weekend diesel turns during the daily season are operated by volunteer drivers.
Locomotive Work
During the operating season there is a requirement for up to four steam engines to operate the service. These engines take a lot of preparing to keep them to the high standard of cleanliness that passengers have come to expect. Whilst a lot of the responsibility for this falls upon the individual driver (on the Ratty a policy of drivers having their "own" engine is maintained where possible), help in this department is welcomed.
Not only is there the cleaning of engines plus coaling them at the end of the day but also the shed environment has to be kept tidy, including the ash pits and shed floor. Wood for lighting up in the morning periodically needs to be stacked up to dry out. Whilst working in the shed maybe out of the public gaze it is nonetheless another essential part of helping to run the railway.
Front of house:
Meet-and-Greet
Station Master
One of the many roles available to volunteers at the railway is Station Master. A Station Master, usually allocated to an intermediate station, is responsible for managing that station for the day. Duties include: selling tickets, general upkeep, and signalling trains to indicate whether they need to stop to pick up passengers.
Station Masters play an important role, especially during the Summer season and special events. During Summer, stations such as Fisherground become extremely busy with passengers starting their journey from the campsite. It is useful to have a Station Master who can sell tickets and take this responsibility from the Guard in order to speed up the boarding process. A Station Master is also often the first person passengers meet when starting their journey at an intermediate station and they will leave an impression on passengers and form a large part of their experience.
Station Masters are greatly appreciated, especially by Guards when there are a lot of people arriving at an intermediate station who need to buy tickets. They also help keep our intermediate stations clean and tidy and stations with buildings such as 'The Green' benefit from this. Many people who have retired from guarding have taken on the Station Master role as it involves similar activities but with less of the physical action. It is an enjoyable role for anyone who enjoys interacting with passengers.
Old signal box attendant
The main line signal box closed by British Rail in the 1960's is today owned by the railway. It was restored by the railway a few years ago and internally fitted out by the late Gordon Nichol. When persons are available, it is opened to the public and this is a job suited to those that want something a little less strenuous.
Behind the scenes:
Museum and Archive
In the archive volunteers are recording all aspects relating to the history of the Railway, from tickets, through photos, paperwork, models and surviving relics to the back of the cab from the Kerr-Stuart standard gauge diesel.
As well as simply recording them, they are building a time-line of changes to rolling stock and buildings which will help to date photos which arrive without any information, and compiling crib sheets to help to identify the people in the images. Although the hardware of the Railway is interesting, it is the people and the stories which make the history come alive.
The Museum and Archive have a variety of jobs to do, from cleaning and repairing exhibits, preparing new displays for the museum and to go out to shows, answering questions sent in to the archive, and catching up on the backlog of donations. Each new bit of information or photo adds another jigsaw piece to the complicated picture of 140 years of the Railway's history.
Sales / fundraising
Society volunteers open the "On-Line Shop" at the end of platform 3 at Ravenglass every bank holiday and special event. Volunteers are always very welcome to help staff the shop during opening hours. Email sales@rerps.co.uk if you are interested in helping.
Maintenance:
Engineering
The Railway has a fully equipped workshop where it undertakes a wide range of tasks, not just the maintenance and overhaul of locos and coaches. Work varies from major rebuilds of the steam and diesel fleet to minor day to day running repairs. In addition there are numerous other tasks involving fabrication and renovation / repair of equipment for other departments on the line. Please note that working in this department requires some previous experience in an engineering environment.
Photograph by Nigel Day
Photograph by Nigel Day
Permanent Way
Not only does this department maintain the 7 miles of track but it is also responsible for a wide range of duties including fencing, ditching and line-side clearance. Contrary to popular belief, work on the track is not all strenuous and jobs can always be found that suit all abilities. As one might expect major work such as track renewal takes place during the winter months with scheduled working parties undertaking major relaying projects often to a strict deadline. During the summer months other tasks are carried out that do not require total possession of the railway. Dates for organised events are published in the society magazine and on our website but volunteers are more than welcome at any time to work alongside the full time staff.
Each November and January there are "track weeks" when a substantial section of track is re-laid by a combined team of staff and volunteers. This involves removing the old track, digging out the ballast (with the aid of a digger!) and then assembling the new track in situ before reconnecting it to the rest of the railway. Ballasting and packing of the track then follows.
Fishplate greasing is an annual task which each year sees one third of the fishplates on the line removed and greased. This is an essential task that prevents the track from buckling in hot weather, and is mostly carried out over bank holiday weekends. Greasing involves working as part of a highly organised team although one has to be warned that the nature of the task usually involves getting very dirty!
There are some 12 miles or so of fences that need to be maintained. This can vary from patching holes and replacing the odd post to complete renewal of long stretches of life expired fence.
There are numerous other tasks that fall under the auspices of this department from repairing dry stone walls to digging ditches or erecting signs.
Litter-picker
This is one of those relatively unseen but necessary jobs that requires doing. It can be most enjoyable to walk the length of the line (or part of it) on a nice sunny day. Bin bags and litter pickers are provided as is a 2-way radio so you know where the trains are.
Gardening and Station Upkeep
Many of our dedicated volunteers undertake a number of different volunteer roles and one of the lesser known ones is that of gardening and general station upkeep.
Those who take part in these activities help to keep all of our stations clean and tidy as well as enhancing their presentation by looking after the many plants and flowers that help to make the Railway look beautiful.
Although gardening and station upkeep is not a role you would necessarily think about when considering volunteering, it is a key role in making the railway presentable to passengers. It provides a good first impression when passenger walk onto the platforms and see the bright flowers and clean platforms. This role works alongside railway staff to ensure the railway looks the best it can at the start of everyday.
Some of the general activities include: replanting, plant watering, sweeping, weeding, bin emptying, painting and anything involved in general upkeep.This role is an excellent pastime, especially for someone who wants to spend a day undertaking a possibly more relaxed role whilst continuing to help the railway.