Becoming a volunteer
Becoming a volunteer on our Railway is a great opportunity to help keep one of Gloucestershire's foremost visitor attractions running - and it is fun too! Uniquely for a Heritage Railway of our size we rely almost exclusively on volunteers to keep it operational. The professionalism which our volunteers bring to the Role they are undertaking, is always appreciated by our visitors.
To join as a volunteer, please submit the Volunteer Application Form you can download here, indicating the Volunteer Role you would like to be considered for. If you are not already a Trust Member, please complete a Membership application at the same time.
On receipt, your application will be acknowledged and then be passed to the relevant Department. Once your chosen Department has accepted you, you will be invited to attend a Volunteer Induction. Volunteer Inductions are normally held on the 3rd Saturday of each month except December.
Following your Induction, you will receive an introductory 3-month Temporary Work Permit to allow your volunteering to get underway. Upon completion of the 3-month Temporary Work Permit, a Full Work Permit will then be issued, renewable annually around the anniversary date of your Trust Membership.
Meet The Recruitment Team events:
Our next meeting the recruitment team events are:
2024
- 16 November - please note that this session will be held at Toddington
2025
- 11 January
- 15 February
- 15 March
- 12 April
- 17 May
- 21 June
- 19 July
- 16 August
- 20 September
- 18 October
- 15 November - Please note that this session will be held at Toddington.
All sessions will start at 13.30 in the Terry Creswell training room, on Platform 1, at Winchcombe Station. These sessions last around 2 hours, are very informal, with plenty of opportunity for questions and answers. If you are thinking of coming along, drop an email to recruitment.officer@gwsr.com
Alternatively, if you already know the department that you would like to join, then why not apply today by submitting an application form found by following the link below.
To see some of our volunteers talking about their roles please click here.
To read case studies click here.
Download our 'Join Us' booklet for full information on Membership and an overview of Volunteering. You will find a member application at the back of the booklet.
Alternatively, you can become a member here. The volunteer application form can be found here.
VOLUNTEERING WITH A DISABILITY
If you are considering volunteering but have a disability, or you wish to apply on behalf of someone with a disability, then this briefing note will give initial guidance.
Couples on the Railway
There are many opportunities for couples who want to work on the railway, whether in the same department or separately. We already have 71 couples, plus some parents and sons/daughter teams, working with us so you will be in good company. In return, you will meet like minded people and have a great deal of fun and shared enjoyment, whilst at the same time doing something worthwhile. Seeing families enjoying themselves because of your efforts is very satisfying indeed knowing that you have made a contribution together.
