Throughout 2025, Southeastern is joining the rest of the railway in celebrating Railway 200 – which commemorates 200 years of the passenger railway in the UK. Overall, Railway 200 aims to attract people who hadn’t previously considered a career in the railway, to do so.
Southeastern’s work with educational not-for-profit company Primary Engineer offered an opportunity to introduce children from 10 Kent primary schools to the world of engineering in the rail industry.
The Primary Engineer Rail Programme is inspiring pupils in Thanet to consider engineering as a future career. It provides schools and teachers with knowledge and skills to encourage their pupils to explore this exciting field from an early age.
The partnership, which launched for the first time ever in January this year, brought together ten Southeastern engineers from the Ramsgate depot and 16 teachers from primary schools in Thanet. Primary Engineer provided specialist kit and training for the project and 60 pupils worked in pairs to build 30 innovative model trains.
The initiative culminated this week when the 10 participating schools showcased their designs at Ramsgate Leisure Centre. The younger children created shoebox locomotives, with the older pupils adding a motorised element to their model trains.
Before the awards ceremony, children had the opportunity to discuss their designs with Southeastern engineers acting as judges. Awards were presented in categories including 'Best Themed Design' and 'Best Communicator’.
Thomas Neve, Apprentice Engineer, Southeastern said:
“This initiative has been a fantastic opportunity to engage with local primary schools and show young people the fun and future they could have working on the railway.
“I really enjoyed helping the students design and build their model trains, and it was great to see them in action at the celebration event in Ramsgate.
“One of the highlights for me was going back to my old school and reconnecting with some of my former teachers. Overall, it’s been a really rewarding experience watching the children grow in confidence and develop new skills.”
Steve Foster, People and Culture Director, South Eastern Railway said:
"Partnerships like this are vital for inspiring the engineers of tomorrow. The creativity and enthusiasm we've seen from these primary school children has been remarkable, and we're delighted that Primary Engineer has given us the platform to connect with young people and show them that engineering is an exciting, rewarding career path.
“There are incredible opportunities for engineering careers right here across the whole South Eastern Railway network, working with both Network Rail and Southeastern, initiatives like this help us showcase the diverse and fulfilling future that awaits in our industry.”
Chris Rochester, Head of Partnerships at Primary Engineer said:
"The partnership with Southeastern has been fantastic enabling us to work with teachers and pupils in Thanet and to enable pupils to develop skills and identify themselves with engineering and the rail sector. The Southeastern engineers have been superb and have been provided with meaningful opportunities to work with pupils in the classroom alongside teachers to inspire young people who could in a few years’ time be the next generation of Southeastern engineering professionals."
Full list of participating Primary Schools:
- St Gregory's Catholic Primary School
- Upton Junior School
- Chilton Primary School
- Minster Church of England Primary School
- Palm Bay Primary School
- Birchington Church of England Primary School
- Bromstone Primary School
- Christ Church Church of England Junior School
- Newlands Primary School
- The Downs Church of England Primary School
