Armed Forces

Military into Rail 

At Network Rail, we’re committed to supporting colleagues who are either ex-military, veterans, reserves, adult cadet instructors, spouses and wider families and friends who have a connection to the Armed Forces.

We value the contribution these people have made and are still making for our country and organisation and are committed to helping their transition into successful civilian careers in the railway.

Network Rail signed the Armed Forces Covenant with the MoD in 2017. As part of this covenant, Network Rail has made a range of commitments in how we recognise the value of serving personnel, reservists, veterans and military families bring to our business.

In addition, Network Rail is a Gold Award holder for the Defence Employer Recognition Scheme (ERS) which demonstrates our exemplary support and advocacy to the Armed Forces community. The ERS award is revalidated every five years at which point Network Rail must evidence how we have upheld our commitments to the Covenant and Gold Award standards – the next revalidation takes place in 2027.

Transitioning from a military career into the civilian workforce, particularly in the railway sector, can be a rewarding process. The skills developed during active service like leadership, discipline, teamwork, and problem-solving are highly valued by the railway industry.

To help this transition, Network Rail have partnered with Careers Transition Partnership (CTP) to offer support to leavers of the Armed Forces as they transition from the military into civilian working life. The CTP offer support from career transition guidance, skills workshops, vocational training, and routes to employment.

Network Rail achieved a Gold Award in the Employer Recognition Scheme – the Ministry of Defence’s highest badge of honour for organisations which have signed the Armed Forces Covenant. 

It acknowledges our active support to the Armed Forces community in our organisation, industry partners, supply chain, charities, and our local communities. 

Around a tenth our workforce come from an Armed Forces background and have thrived in our organisation, providing the skills that are critical to our Railway Upgrade Plan and helping us to build a bigger, better railway for Britain. 

Learn more about life at Network Rail from some of our ex-Armed Forces colleagues

We value the unique training and experience Military Reserves bring to our organisation such as Darin.