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Abellio Trainee Depot Drivers - Ilford, Colchester and Clacton*

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MrPIC

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30 May 2015
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Just to point out to any potential applicants, depot driving at GA no longer has an automatic line of promotion to mainline driving. Whether having been a depot driver will make you more attractive an applicant for any mainline jobs is unknown. Good luck to all those applying however!
 

mobiller

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26 Feb 2015
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Not sure if here is the right place to ask but is that Salary & Benefits £26,577 final ?
 

Dave1987

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Please note guys and girls applying for this that there is no longer an automatic right to promotion to the mainline.
 
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jellybabyj

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31 Dec 2014
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Pain that I can't apply for this as I still awaiting confirmation from my trainee train driver

I need to contact the recruitment team but can't find a contact number only email
 

df1991

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26 Apr 2015
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Does anyone know if you're able to reapply for this role when you applied for the May position? Still waiting to hear back and have just emailed them asking if it's possible but I assume I won't hear back until tomorrow or following week because office hours. Cheers
 

Sgiot

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20 Apr 2015
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10:1 you don't get a reply bud. I've emailed AGA 3 times without a single response. I phoned the head office, explained that I had sent numerous emails and asked if I could be put through to HR. I was put through to the automated 0800 number asking me if I wanted option A) Tickets for travel today , option B) Tickets for travel tomorrow or thereafter , option C) Timetable information etc etc. In other words, fobbed off. I hope you get a better response.
 

Carl86

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12 May 2015
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Does anyone know if you're able to reapply for this role when you applied for the May position? Still waiting to hear back and have just emailed them asking if it's possible but I assume I won't hear back until tomorrow or following week because office hours. Cheers

no as I also applied for the may position went to apply for this one and it came back with unable to apply due to that and can not apply until November :(
 

Economist

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24 Feb 2013
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Out of interest, for those that do attempt to move from Depot Driving to Mainline Driving, is a resit of the aptitude tests mandatory regardless of how long the original pass is valid for?

I passed my first assessment back in April of this year, so if I got a Depot Driving role later this year and applied for mainline in say 2017, would I have to resit? Appreciate it probably depends on the TOC but does the RSSB have any policy on it?
 

df1991

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10:1 you don't get a reply bud. I've emailed AGA 3 times without a single response. I phoned the head office, explained that I had sent numerous emails and asked if I could be put through to HR. I was put through to the automated 0800 number asking me if I wanted option A) Tickets for travel today , option B) Tickets for travel tomorrow or thereafter , option C) Timetable information etc etc. In other words, fobbed off. I hope you get a better response.

That sounds like a massive disappointment. At what stage was you at? The online application? What was your score if you don't mind me asking



no as I also applied for the may position went to apply for this one and it came back with unable to apply due to that and can not apply until November :(

Ah that really sucks then. Was you on the previous may forum post? Can i ask what your scored up if you don't mind me asking?


I had read that someone had gotten a response that they're still getting back to applicants or trying to by end of this month. It's ashame if we don't all hear back to be rejected just so we know. LOROL hadn't sent me an email of rejection. Was waiting for months to hear back. Emailed clearly which date I had applied and they made the mistake of giving me the wrong information. Most people would be fumed in that situation. Can't be that difficult to send the same rejection email out to 100s especially when it's obvious that more than one person has this duty. Just thought with all rail companies they'd give you the common curtesy to send a rejection email. It's quite unorganised that companies are run this way. But anyway applying for this, good luck anyway and hopefully you'll get a better result :)
 

Carl86

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That sounds like a massive disappointment. At what stage was you at? The online application? What was your score if you don't mind me asking





Ah that really sucks then. Was you on the previous may forum post? Can i ask what your scored up if you don't mind me asking?


I had read that someone had gotten a response that they're still getting back to applicants or trying to by end of this month. It's ashame if we don't all hear back to be rejected just so we know. LOROL hadn't sent me an email of rejection. Was waiting for months to hear back. Emailed clearly which date I had applied and they made the mistake of giving me the wrong information. Most people would be fumed in that situation. Can't be that difficult to send the same rejection email out to 100s especially when it's obvious that more than one person has this duty. Just thought with all rail companies they'd give you the common curtesy to send a rejection email. It's quite unorganised that companies are run this way. But anyway applying for this, good luck anyway and hopefully you'll get a better result :)

scored 62 :(
 

df1991

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scored 62 :(

Ah no worries mate. I scored like the same as you. Point more or less or something. Dw next time :). Keep optimistic, keep working hard and don't give up. Someone had advise revising more about the role. Most we can do for applications like that or all applications is just keep researching and revising about the role :). Keep trying. We'll get there eventually
 

mresh91

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30 Aug 2013
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161
Well I put in a very lazy, although early, application with a sub 50 score... so not very hopeful there. Will be on the lookout in early 2016 for this position though, looks exciting I think...
 

Berries

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Mid application, they closed it early for the train driver role. Is this usual?
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---
Please note guys and girls applying for this that there is no longer an automatic right to promotion to the mainline.

It should be useful experience though, perhaps?
 

Dave1987

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It should be useful experience though, perhaps?

Indeed and you are in the driving grade. No matter how much people bash the job of a depot driver on this forum it is still a decent job and very challenging at times. But you need to remember the automatic promotion right is gone now and you would need to apply for a trainee mainline position if you wanted it.
 

badassunicorn

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You are in the driving grade, yes, sort of but not really. Without wishing to bring up the argument around this again, if you are thinking of potentially applying for trainee driver positions outside the company whilst you are a depot driver, being a depot driver has absolutely no sway to it, and some believe that it makes you less appealing as a candidate as you are half trained by another TOC. But depot driver is a good job none the less but I would really urge anyone who has their heart set on mainline driving to leave it and apply for trainee mainline roles elsewhere, trust me when I say that there is nothing worse then sitting in the depot at 5mph watching all the big boys zoom past on £40k if that's what you really want to be doing!
 

Dave1987

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You are in the driving grade, yes, sort of but not really. Without wishing to bring up the argument around this again, if you are thinking of potentially applying for trainee driver positions outside the company whilst you are a depot driver, being a depot driver has absolutely no sway to it, and some believe that it makes you less appealing as a candidate as you are half trained by another TOC. But depot driver is a good job none the less but I would really urge anyone who has their heart set on mainline driving to leave it and apply for trainee mainline roles elsewhere, trust me when I say that there is nothing worse then sitting in the depot at 5mph watching all the big boys zoom past on £40k if that's what you really want to be doing!

Sorry but there is no "sort of but not really", depot drivers are in the driving grade end of. Aslef recognises them as drivers and they drive trains for a living. As far as it being a route into a mainline position then I completely disagree, it is by no means certain but keep your nose clean and keep a good record and you definitely make yourself appealing as a candidate for mainline training. The only reason that the right of promotion has disappeared on GEML is that the company want to be able to hire qualified drivers in the future. I know there a people out there who will only ever apply for a trainee mainline position, and they are severely restricting their chances of getting in IMO. After all you started as a depot driver and then got mainline didn't you, never forget where you came from.....
 
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MrPIC

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I haven't forgotten at all, its just worth saying as the amount of depot drivers who start and expect to be out mainline within a year is too high, especially nowadays where there is no line of promotion. If you want to go mainline and that's what you want, go for mainline jobs. Depot driver is a great job as I said and I loved almost all of my time as one, but it doesn't compare to mainline driving and the salary doesn't come close.
 

Berries

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Are you happy working for Abellio? They seem very thorough at recruitment level, is this true of other aspects of the operation?
 

MichaelAMW

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18 Jun 2010
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You are in the driving grade, yes, sort of but not really. Without wishing to bring up the argument around this again, if you are thinking of potentially applying for trainee driver positions outside the company whilst you are a depot driver, being a depot driver has absolutely no sway to it, and some believe that it makes you less appealing as a candidate as you are half trained by another TOC. But depot driver is a good job none the less but I would really urge anyone who has their heart set on mainline driving to leave it and apply for trainee mainline roles elsewhere, trust me when I say that there is nothing worse then sitting in the depot at 5mph watching all the big boys zoom past on £40k if that's what you really want to be doing!

Why do you think "being a depot driver has absolutely no sway to it?" That's a rather extreme claim. Surely any level of training and experience is useful?
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---
Sorry but there is no "sort of but not really", depot drivers are in the driving grade end of. Aslef recognises them as drivers and they drive trains for a living. As far as it being a route into a mainline position then I completely disagree, it is by no means certain but keep your nose clean and keep a good record and you definitely make yourself appealing as a candidate for mainline training. The only reason that the right of promotion has disappeared on GEML is that the company want to be able to hire qualified drivers in the future. I know there a people out there who will only ever apply for a trainee mainline position, and they are severely restricting their chances of getting in IMO. After all you started as a depot driver and then got mainline didn't you, never forget where you came from.....

I think it's similar on EMT, if I have interpreted correctly the comments by a chum who was a depot driver at Derby. EMT usually recruit "mainline" drivers either as qualified drivers from elsewhere or out of the depot driver group. So, they generally don't recruit mainline drivers straight off the street but neither do they *only* fill those vacancies from the depot drivers. Whether EMT actually get much in the way of applications from qualified drivers is another matter. (I suspect that his comments actually apply to places where there are also depot driver as opposed to every place EMT have drivers based.)
 
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Dave1987

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I haven't forgotten at all, its just worth saying as the amount of depot drivers who start and expect to be out mainline within a year is too high, especially nowadays where there is no line of promotion. If you want to go mainline and that's what you want, go for mainline jobs. Depot driver is a great job as I said and I loved almost all of my time as one, but it doesn't compare to mainline driving and the salary doesn't come close.

Yes I agree up to a point but I would look at it another way. I've seen posts from on here from many people who have only been applying for mainline trainee positions for years and not got anywhere, end of really. And most trainee posts are filled from internal applicants.
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---
I think it's similar on EMT, if I have interpreted correctly the comments by a chum who was a depot driver at Derby. EMT usually recruit "mainline" drivers either as qualified drivers from elsewhere or out of the depot driver group. So, they generally don't recruit mainline drivers straight off the street but neither do they *only* fill those vacancies from the depot drivers. Whether EMT actually get much in the way of applications from qualified drivers is another matter. (I suspect that his comments actually apply to places where there are also depot driver as opposed to every place EMT have drivers based.)

Depot and the mainline are two completely different animals and pose different challenges. But doing a good job in the depot should definitely put you in job shape with an application for mainline training. I find it quite sad that people I know to be former depot drivers who have progressed to mainline are now joining the club of putting the depot job down. One hopes they don't have too many incidents on the mainline and end up back in the depot permanently as others have done.
 
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MichaelAMW

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Yes I agree up to a point but I would look at it another way. I've seen posts from on here from many people who have only been applying for mainline trainee positions for years and not got anywhere, end of really. And most trainee posts are filled from internal applicants.
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---


Depot and the mainline are two completely different animals and pose different challenges. But doing a good job in the depot should definitely put you in job shape with an application for mainline training. I find it quite sad that people I know to be former depot drivers who have progressed to mainline are now joining the club of putting the depot job down. One hopes they don't have too many incidents on the mainline and end up back in the depot permanently as others have done.

"Completely" different? I'd have thought one was a subset of the other. That said, I don't doubt that there are different challenges. But you still have to know the rules, move the train, work to signals, deal with risks on the line etc. I'm guessing here a bit, obviously, but hopefully you can get the point I'm trying to make.
 

SPADTrap

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Comparing EMT with AGA is pointless, they have different policies now when it comes to depot drivers going mainline.
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---
One hopes they don't have too many incidents on the mainline and end up back in the depot permanently as others have done.

Ironic that! :lol:
 

mresh91

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30 Aug 2013
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Well I put in a very lazy, although early, application with a sub 50 score... so not very hopeful there. Will be on the lookout in early 2016 for this position though, looks exciting I think...

...aaaaand just got the rejection confirmed on my application status. Figured as such anyway, but will apply *properly* when the situation arises again, fingers crossed! :lol:
 

Panupreset

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8 May 2015
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Is this for a September start? I have heard rumours of a DD course maybe starting then.
If your heart is set on mainline then you are going to have a lengthy wait for progression to mainline, several years in fact. Other TOC's in the London area are recruiting.
That said you will learn much as a Depot Driver, particularly at Ilford where your traction knowledge will become considerable and you will get to do lots of shunting with the 08 diesels.
 

mresh91

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mresh91 said:
Well I put in a very lazy, although early, application with a sub 50 score... so not very hopeful there. Will be on the lookout in early 2016 for this position though, looks exciting I think...

Update 24th May 2016:

Abellio is currently recruiting for this role if anyone is interested.. for Norwich, Colchester and Ilford. I'm going to put in my application now, hopefully I'll do better this time round!
 
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Im applying for Norwich and Cambridge and on the application form it asks for development areas does anyone have any clues or answers to help thanks
 

TheBusDriver

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1 Mar 2016
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I have also applied for a position at Colchester.

Yesterday i was invited to an online assessment which i have now completed.

Good luck everyone :)
 
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