• Our booking engine at tickets.railforums.co.uk (powered by TrainSplit) helps support the running of the forum with every ticket purchase! Find out more and ask any questions/give us feedback in this thread!

SWR - Commercial Gaurd Basingstoke

Status
Not open for further replies.

wegotitback

Member
Joined
11 Feb 2021
Messages
11
Location
Wallasey, Merseyside
Hi everyone, I've passed the OPC with SWR and have been invited for interview for the above job. Just wondering if anyone on here has been in a similar position and maybe can help me with what might happen on the day, any questions I may be asked etc.
I've got nearly 18 years railway experience from Station Staff to Station Duty Manager and for the last 10 years working in the Control room. Thanks
 
Sponsor Post - registered members do not see these adverts; click here to register, or click here to log in
R

RailUK Forums

Simon B Guard

Member
Joined
23 Jan 2021
Messages
21
Location
Gillingham
I had and passed the interview last November. The interview was on microsoft teams. The questions were competency based but slated towards likely situations as a guard. I was asked about personal safety, customer safety and train defects. I was asked a question on customer service and a few more general ones about the company.

Good luck with the interview
 

wegotitback

Member
Joined
11 Feb 2021
Messages
11
Location
Wallasey, Merseyside
I had and passed the interview last November. The interview was on microsoft teams. The questions were competency based but slated towards likely situations as a guard. I was asked about personal safety, customer safety and train defects. I was asked a question on customer service and a few more general ones about the company.

Good luck with the interview
Thanks for your reply that is really helpful. Can you remember what they asked about the company? I'll be reclocating from the North West so know very little about the company besides a bit of research i've done online.
 

MiNi

Member
Joined
22 Sep 2019
Messages
412
Location
Sherborne
Thanks for your reply that is really helpful. Can you remember what they asked about the company? I'll be reclocating from the North West so know very little about the company besides a bit of research i've done online.
History of the company,date the company started,former names. Areas covered,passenger numbers etc.
 

Simon B Guard

Member
Joined
23 Jan 2021
Messages
21
Location
Gillingham
Thanks for your reply that is really helpful. Can you remember what they asked about the company? I'll be reclocating from the North West so know very little about the company besides a bit of research i've done online.
They asked me about the ownership and about the lines run by the company
 
Joined
22 Jun 2020
Messages
154
Location
Portsmouth
Hi everyone, I've passed the OPC with SWR and have been invited for interview for the above job. Just wondering if anyone on here has been in a similar position and maybe can help me with what might happen on the day, any questions I may be asked etc.
I've got nearly 18 years railway experience from Station Staff to Station Duty Manager and for the last 10 years working in the Control room. Thanks
Hi, I was asked the following questions in pretty much this order as I remember (It was 14 months ago lol)

What is your current job and describe your typical day.

What do you know about SWR?
(I answered with Ownership, Franchise, Sub-urban and County's served and how many services a day and investment plans (new trains and refurb of old carriages, increase in peak seats, station refurbs etc)

What do you think a commercial Guard does?
(Memorised the job description)

What attracted you to apply for the Job?

What do you think you have to offer the company?

Tell us about jobs which have had elements of safety and customer service involved

Give us some examples of times when you have had to exercise your safety role at work

Give us some examples of when you have gone over and above in a customer service role

Give us an example of when you have felt uncomfortable or threatened at work and how you have dealt with it
(I'm a manager of a bookies, I told them about one of the times I've been held up and robbed). Verbal abuse and how you've dealt with it is good one

Be prepared to back up the examples questions with details

They then asked how I would deal with a variety of situations on a train, Fare evasion, Noisy Teenages, Late night drunks etc.

All in all it took about an hour and a half, and I was interviewed by two managers. After introductions I was made to feel very much at ease.

I passed by the way, in Dec 19 and am still waiting for a start date because of covid

Hope this is of some help to you, and best of luck with the interview
 

DunfordBridge

Member
Joined
13 Apr 2013
Messages
600
Location
Scarborough
When talking about the company, do not forget, Mark Hopwood is no longer the interim MD as he has returned to GWR.

Great post @Fratton Guard? Not quite sure I can match the experience with the robbers but I used to work as a security guard in a supermarket in a deprived ex-mining village. Do SWR guards often get threatened, seemed to be a weekly occurrence in this supermarket?
 

wegotitback

Member
Joined
11 Feb 2021
Messages
11
Location
Wallasey, Merseyside
Hi everyone I've had my interview and already been told I've been successful and am now waiting for a date for a medical.
I've just noticed on the job description its a 42 hour week, I'm only doing a 35 hour week with Merseyrail so this is abviously a lot more.
Is anyone familiar with the roster who can tell me if this is actually correct.
 

MiNi

Member
Joined
22 Sep 2019
Messages
412
Location
Sherborne
Hi everyone I've had my interview and already been told I've been successful and am now waiting for a date for a medical.
I've just noticed on the job description its a 42 hour week, I'm only doing a 35 hour week with Merseyrail so this is abviously a lot more.
Is anyone familiar with the roster who can tell me if this is actually correct.
I believe that 42 hours is correct. Certainly the commercial guards jobs at Yeovil junction & Salisbury were advertised as 42 hours over 5 day's.
 
Joined
22 Jun 2020
Messages
154
Location
Portsmouth
Hi everyone I've had my interview and already been told I've been successful and am now waiting for a date for a medical.
I've just noticed on the job description its a 42 hour week, I'm only doing a 35 hour week with Merseyrail so this is abviously a lot more.
Is anyone familiar with the roster who can tell me if this is actually correct.
Fratton is 42 hours too, think that's the standard for Commercial Guards. Drivers is 35.

What depot did you apply for please?

I'm 4th in the que for Fratton, having applied in October 2019 and passing interview in December 2019 but was told by HR on Monday that it would be unlikely that I would start this year. Also told me that Fratton has a particularly slow turnover so may not be as gloomy an outlook for everyone.
 

wegotitback

Member
Joined
11 Feb 2021
Messages
11
Location
Wallasey, Merseyside
Fratton is 42 hours too, think that's the standard for Commercial Guards. Drivers is 35.

What depot did you apply for please?

I'm 4th in the que for Fratton, having applied in October 2019 and passing interview in December 2019 but was told by HR on Monday that it would be unlikely that I would start this year. Also told me that Fratton has a particularly slow turnover so may not be as gloomy an outlook for everyone.
I applied for Basingstoke.
Initial online appliation was in February 2020, so waited a year to take the OPC and be interviewed.
How long after the interview did you wait for your medical?
 

ian94

Member
Joined
26 Aug 2008
Messages
55
The medical lasts 6 months, so they will get it in once you've got a start date, no point doing a medical if they'll have you waiting for over that amount of time
 

Simon B Guard

Member
Joined
23 Jan 2021
Messages
21
Location
Gillingham
Currently 4th for Salisbury with no movement likely as long as there are covid restrictions. Salisbury has a bit more turnover due to size and transfers to Yeovil
 

theironroad

Established Member
Joined
21 Nov 2014
Messages
3,692
Location
London
Hi everyone I've had my interview and already been told I've been successful and am now waiting for a date for a medical.
I've just noticed on the job description its a 42 hour week, I'm only doing a 35 hour week with Merseyrail so this is abviously a lot more.
Is anyone familiar with the roster who can tell me if this is actually correct.

SWR Guards (non commercial) and Commercial Guards both do a 42hr /5 day week averaged over a roster cycle.
 
Joined
22 Jun 2020
Messages
154
Location
Portsmouth
I applied for Basingstoke.
Initial online appliation was in February 2020, so waited a year to take the OPC and be interviewed.
How long after the interview did you wait for your medical?
I haven't had the medical yet either. When I was phoned to tell me I'd passed the interview, HR said you get your start date and the medical date is about a month before that. Hope you hear something soon
 

wegotitback

Member
Joined
11 Feb 2021
Messages
11
Location
Wallasey, Merseyside
Do anyone know the rate of pay for working overtime and rest days?
Is it standard hourly pay or are there any enhancements?
Do you get paid travelling time when asked to cover shifts at other depots?
 
Last edited:
Joined
22 Jun 2020
Messages
154
Location
Portsmouth
Do anyone know the rate of pay for working overtime and rest days?
Is it standard hourly pay or are there any enhancements?
Do you get paid travelling time when asked to cover shifts at other depots?
Not sure but I think I remember reading on another thread that the union secured a higher basic salary in favour of enhanced overtime rates. I could be wrong about that, and have no idea about travelling time.
 

theironroad

Established Member
Joined
21 Nov 2014
Messages
3,692
Location
London
Do anyone know the rate of pay for working overtime and rest days?
Is it standard hourly pay or are there any enhancements?
Do you get paid travelling time when asked to cover shifts at other depots?

I'm not too sure about overtime rates.

With regards travelling time, yes, but it's incorporated into your diagram.

Let's say you're based at Fratton (your home depot) and there's a job uncovered at Basingstoke.

The job at Basingstoke let's say is from 0900 to 1600 and has work that means it finishes at Basingstoke (7 hour job)

Train planning and rosters will issue you a diagram that covers getting you to and from Fratton to Basingstoke and back (either by train or taxi normally) it may mean you are doing a 10.5 hour job and if you were on a rostered 9 hour 'as ordered' job, they'd automatically pay you the 1.5hr S overtime. (Not sure if enhanced or not)

Make sense? :)
 

TEW

Established Member
Joined
16 May 2008
Messages
5,841
Rest day work is paid at 1.25 x standard rate, overtime is paid at standard rate.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Top