The North Yorkshire Moors Railway (NYMR) will celebrate its 1000+ volunteers and thank them for their hard work and dedication during National Volunteer‘s Week which runs from the 1st to the 7th of June 2022.

The well-loved heritage railway will see more than 300,000 passengers visit in a normal operating season, which requires a minimum of 200,000 volunteer hours each year which works out to an average of 22 hours per person each month to keep the heritage services on track.

Driving locomotives is one of the most popular volunteer roles but there are also many other essential ‘behind the scenes roles which are needed to keep the railway operating safely including NYMR’s Infrastructure and Motive Power departments which sees volunteers support the full breadth of civil engineering, building, electrical and mechanical work including maintenance, repair and overhaul of the heritage railways steam and diesel fleet.

With a focal point on volunteer recruitment, NYMR’s new Volunteering and Community department are expanding and people with experience in education and learning as well as community engagement can make a real difference by enhancing passenger enjoyment as well as the storytelling side of the heritage railway. Analytical and data work is also an area which needs support which may be suited for volunteers based at home.

Further roles for volunteers include travelling ticket inspectors, signalling and telecommunications, customer service, retail, catering, administration, fundraising and education.

In order to raise awareness of these essential roles, NYMR will be running a social media campaign to bring attention to the crucial contributions that volunteers make to keep this wonderful attraction steaming into the future.

Marcus Aldrich, Head of Volunteering & Community Engagement, said:

“Our volunteers are the life and soul of the railway, without whom we simply wouldn’t be able to run; it’s a challenging but hugely rewarding opportunity – with the offer of experiences that money just can’t buy. This week is a time to really honour our volunteers and thank them for helping to keep us on track.

“As an organisation, we’re heavily reliant upon volunteers and welcome hundreds of invaluable helpers up and down the line who get involved with a variety of hands-on roles. However, we still need more. You don’t need to be a train enthusiast or know all the lingo, and we’d love a whole cross-section of people to apply. We’re particularly eager to recruit more female volunteers – for every department.”

If you are interested in volunteering at one of the UK’s most popular heritage railways whilst helping the aims of the charitable trust such as providing education for all ages, please get on board today and apply to volunteer with NYMR at: http://nymr.co.uk/volunteer

You can find out more about the railway when we took a trip on the North Yorkshire Moors Railway earlier this year.