Get your career on track with a team where you can grow, belong and make an impact from day one.

About GTR

Greater Thameslink Railway (GTR) is the UK's largest rail operator, connecting millions of people through Southern, Thameslink, Great Northern and Gatwick Express services. Through our vision of Creating Great Journeys, we are committed to delivering safe, reliable and customer-focused travel, supporting local communities, and fostering a diverse, equitable and inclusive workplace where everyone feels valued and can thrive.

Career Development

At GTR, your career is a journey. We offer clear development pathways, progression opportunities and support to help you grow, whether you are starting out or taking the next step in your railway career.

Our Commitment to DEI

We are committed to building a diverse and inclusive workforce that reflects the communities we serve, creating a culture where everyone feels welcome, respected, safe and able to be themselves at work.

What You'll Do 

We have re-evaluated how we can best support our drivers' competency management here at Southern and Gatwick Express. To deliver our best possible service, we need to maximise the availability of competent, safe, engaged and productive train drivers. We will support our drivers by ensuring our management teams are proactive and focused on their development and performance. To do this, our Competency Development Managers and Driver Instructor Development Managers need talented people managers to lead and inspire them. The two Regional Competency Managers hold substantial areas of responsibility across wide geographical areas. You will be based in your own office at Selhurst, but your teams will be located across the 13 driver depots, and you'll ensure that you travel regularly to support all drivers and their managers, within your area. You'll therefore need to proactively manage and engage your CDM/DIDM team across the business by being a visible leader and prioritising the performance of your direct team, so they in turn can drive the performance of their driver teams. Achieving a high degree of personal reputation and engagement with the driver community across Southern is essential to the success of you and your team.

This is a significant leadership role, suitable for a conventional working week and not suitable for remote working, as physical availability to drivers and managers is essential. There is a requirement to act as senior second line on-call on a roster for operations.

How you'll make a difference:

• Accountable for the safety performance of all Southern and Gatwick Express drivers in the area team, by leading and managing the allocated Competency Development Managers.
• Ensure all Competency Development Managers and Driver Instructor Development Managers are in competence to undertake all required activities, through regular audit, quality assurance and observation.
• Proactively manage absence within direct team by ensuring deputy arrangements are in place.
• Lead and develop direct team's personal continuous professional development and ensure high standards of engagement with local and business objectives.
• Report on the performance of safety within direct team on a regular basis, identifying operational trends and developing improvement plans.

What You'll Bring

• This role is suitable for qualified train drivers with a minimum of four years' driving experience on the mainline railway network. This does not include driving experience on Metro, light rail or preserved railways.
• Previous demonstrable experience in people development, ideally of managers, is essential.
• Knowledge of Electrostar fleets and valid route competency on the Southern network is highly advantageous.
• Competence as an A1 assessor is essential and competence as a V1 verifier is highly advantageous, although training could be supplied to the right candidate.

What We Can Offer You

At GTR, we are committed to supporting our colleagues both professionally and personally. In return for your skills and dedication, we offer a competitive benefits package including:

• Final salary pension 
• 25 days holiday plus bank holidays 
• Healthcare 
• Free travel on GTR and sister groups for you and your family 
• 75% off travel on other train operating companies for you, and leisure for your family 
• Discounted Oyster Card 
• Family-friendly policies, including maternity, paternity, adoption, and shared parental leave
• Access to StarHub – our employee benefits platform offering discounts with a wide range of retailers and services
• Career development and progression opportunities across the UK's largest rail networks
• The opportunity to make a real difference to millions of customer journeys every year.

We will keep candidates informed throughout the process and aim to complete hiring decisions in a timely manner. Due to the high volume of applications we receive, we are unfortunately unable to provide individual feedback at the application stage. Please refer to the ‘Recruitment Process and Timelines' document attached to this role.

How to Apply

Please complete the application form and submit your CV.

We look forward to hearing from you and exploring whether GTR could be your next career step.

Please note that we reserve the right to close this vacancy earlier than the advertised closing date if we receive a high volume of suitable applications.