Northern has started training the first three conductors it has recruited to work on its new Northumberland Line.

David Nattress, Kevin Watson and Cameron Young are the first of fifteen conductors being hired for the route, with the deadline fast approaching for applications for the remaining twelve jobs. Interested people need to apply by this Sunday (12 November).

The conductors will be paid a wage of £29,098 once qualified, together with benefits including free train travel. Initial will training will take twelve weeks and the apprenticeship period takes twelve months.

Northumberland County Council has approved the building of a facility for Northern staff in Ashington, which will have a mess room, an office and a signing-in point for staff.

The original Northumberland Line was one of the many victims of the Beeching cuts in the 1960s. Since passenger services were stopped, the route has only been used by freight, and the volume of freight traffic has declined considerably. Northern will restore passenger services to the line next year.

Workers are restoring eighteen miles of track as part of preparations to enhance connectivity between local communities. Stations are being built at Northumberland Park, Seaton Delaval, Newsham, Blyth Bebside, Bedlington and Ashington.

Kerry Peters, regional director at Northern, said: “This is an amazing opportunity for those living in the area.

“Some of the people working on-board our trains today started their career in very different arenas, from the prison service and cabin crew to social care and financial services.

“No-one should think the railway ‘isn’t for them’ – it’s an industry with much to offer.”