Volunteer roles at Kidderminster
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Kidderminster is the starting point for most of the visitors to the Severn Valley Railway owing to its prime location near the West Midlands conurbation, with excellent rail links via the mainline station next door, and an abundance of car parking. It is therefore the place which will create the first impression to visitors and to that end, we have to create an environment which will give our visitors a good impression. This can be achieved by not only the general appearance of the station but by the reception they receive, the information available to assist with planning their day, answers to their numerous questions and of course the facilities available.
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Many of these objectives can only be achieved with the assistance of volunteers. We are continually in need of volunteers who have, or are prepared to gain, a knowledge of the railway and a knowledge what other stations on the railway have to offer, advise on events taking place and generally to meet and greet visitors.
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Many people associate volunteering on the railway as being a person checking tickets on the train or being a guard waving a green flag. These jobs usually start with becoming a member of the platform staff so that they learn how the Railway works before taking on more safety-critical roles.
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To maintain the appearance of the station, we have a group called ‘The Wednesday Gang. These volunteers will carry out minor repairs, re-paint benches, platform trollies, maintain the flower beds and the other thousand and one jobs. During special events, the station concourse changes its image to become a Christmas Fairyland, a scary Halloween scene, or a World War II scene. Volunteers are always needed to assist in setting up these scenarios and to return the station to a station after the event. Unfortunately, many of the volunteers that we have relied upon in the past are beginning to feel the their age and recognize their new limitations. Help is always being sought by the maintenance gang, especially if you have a bit of DIY knowledge but that's not always necessary as training can be given.
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We therefore require volunteers from various walks of life, people with skills or without. People prepared to be part of a team and who are level headed and prepared to assist with tasks that they are competent to assist with. An interest in trains may be helpful but you certainly do not need to know the ins and out of a Great Western Hall Class locomotive or a class 37 diesel locomotive!
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Platform staff
Platform staff will assist passengers to their train, help disabled passenger onto the train and to maintain a keen eye on the many safety issues surrounding the railway. Training can be given to allow platform staff to become a ‘train dispatcher’, a member of staff authorized to assist the train guard in ensuring the safe departure of a train.
Guard
The guard is responsible for the safety of the train and its passengers, and a train can only leave the station with the permission of the guard. Guards therefore start their turn wherever their coaches or wagons are - usually at Kidderminster or Bridgnorth, although trains may start from Bewdley during special events such as galas.
Signalling
​Signalmen/Lady signalmen operate the signals and points from a signal box in order to control the movement of trains.
The signal box at Kidderminster is the biggest on the line, so new signalmen won't begin their signalling experience here. However, volunteers may progress here over time after they've worked at other signal boxes for a while.
