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Southeastern wants more women train drivers Southeastern and Greater Anglia want more women train drivers
(35 minutes later)
A rail company has launched a campaign to recruit more women train drivers. Rail companies have launched campaigns to recruit more women train drivers.
Southeastern, which serves London, Kent and East Sussex, says fewer than 5% of its drivers are women and it wants 40% of applicants to be women by 2021.Southeastern, which serves London, Kent and East Sussex, says fewer than 5% of its drivers are women and it wants 40% of applicants to be women by 2021.
Ellie Burrows, Southeastern's train services director, said the railways should not be male-dominated. Its train services director Ellie Burrows said: "It's no longer the case that little boys play with toy trains and little girls play with dolls."
She said: "Society has moved on. It's no longer the case that little boys play with toy trains and little girls play with dolls." Greater Anglia described the railways as "male-dominated" and said fewer than 5% of its train drivers were women.
The company, which serves the east of England, has launched an internal recruitment campaign and has recently appointed its first female yard controller.
Helen Dickerson is responsible for train movements at its Norwich depot and making sure trains are refuelled and kept up to date with maintenance checks.
She said: "There are more than 100 men at Crown Point [depot] and I am the only woman working in a front-line engineering role.
"The job is all about communication and it's great to know you're helping people get to work, school or important appointments every day."
Greater Anglia said 22% of its employees were women, which was "something the company is working to address along with the rest of the industry".
Initiatives are being introduced by Southeastern to encourage more women to apply for a variety of roles at the company.Initiatives are being introduced by Southeastern to encourage more women to apply for a variety of roles at the company.
They include recruitment open days, mentoring and development programmes for female employees, and a change in recruitment campaigns to reflect diversity.They include recruitment open days, mentoring and development programmes for female employees, and a change in recruitment campaigns to reflect diversity.
The rail firm tells future applicants on its website that driving a train "brings responsibility, pride and achievement". Ms Burrows said that "society has moved on" and added that railways should not be male-dominated.
"You know you're providing an invaluable service to thousands of people every single day," it says. "There are thousands of talented women out there who could have a rewarding career working in roles ranging from engineering to driving, on-board supervising or sales.
Ms Burrows added that "society has moved on".
"There are thousands of talented women out there who could have a rewarding career working in roles ranging from engineering to driving, on-board supervising or sales," she added.
"It's vital that as a major transport operator, we have a workforce that reflects the diversity of our passengers.""It's vital that as a major transport operator, we have a workforce that reflects the diversity of our passengers."
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