It varies between operators. At my company shifts are 5-10 hours in length. Breaks are 30 minutes minimum excluding any berthing, walking times and cab preparation allowances. Driving time is 4hr30 maximum before a break must be taken. 12 hours rest between turns (as per Hidden). Unlike PCV and HGV drivers train driving hours aren't mandated by law instead they are agreed between management and union representatives.
A typical turn for me is 10 minutes booking on time (collect paperwork, check equipment, read notice cases) and then 5 minutes walking time to the platforms to collect a train (or the taxi pick up point). The actual work content varies between each turn which could be a short hop of less than 1 hour or it could be a 3 hour voyage of over 200 miles followed by a break. After you've had a break then you pick up another train and it's either another short hop (or two) or a longer trip. At the end of the day we have 5 minutes to walk back to the SOP from the train at the place you started. I can cover 500 miles on the longer turns.
Some days you may not have any train working allocated to you and you sit Spare in the depot to cover any ad hoc work that may come up.
