YOUNGSTERS gained an insight into the construction and engineering industry when they visited an £82m train building factory in their hometown today (Friday, March 6).

Pupils from Greenfield Community College in Newton Aycliffe were among those given an exclusive tour of Hitachi Rail Europe's burgeoning manufacturing facility.

Built environment specialist Shepherd, which is leading the build, organised the tour as part of the Open Doors Weekend, aimed at sparking the imaginations of young people and raising awareness of career opportunities.

Helen Duffy, progress and guidance leader at Greenfield, said the children had been fascinated by the factory.

“Some of the older children are already thinking about potential careers and one boy wants to study construction at college,” she said.

“It was a fantastic opportunity for him to see the opportunities available on his doorstep. On the bus back the children said very positive things about the experience.”

Schedule for completion later this year, the factory will serve as Hitachi Rail’s primary European facility for train manufacturing and assembly.

It will be the base for the manufacture of the new Great Western Main Line and East Coast Main Line trains the company is building for the Government’s Intercity Express Programme.

Mark Perkins, chief executive of Shepherd, said: “We are committed to fuelling the pipeline of young talent, to help ensure that our business remains future-proof and that regional investment translates into local recruitment. Our goal is to create a long-term skills legacy to reflect this area’s proud engineering heritage.”