Operational Excellence. Lead the Future of Rail.
LEVEL 5 HIGH PERFORMANCE LEADER PROGRAMME
Our Level 5 Rail Industry programme is where operational managers become high-performance leaders. Expect an industry-focused, outcomes-driven learning experience designed to strengthen operational leadership across track, train, and the wider rail network – equipping leaders to address today’s critical challenges. Go beyond generic management training by combining real-world rail expertise, a whole-industry perspective. The result? Leaders with a higher performance mentality who are ready to deliver the future of the railway.
Transform operational performance through real projects that tackle real rail industry challenges to deliver real results.
Join the UK’s only Level 5 leadership programme custom-built for operational managers in the rail industry. Your learning improves performance metrics. Your improvements earn your qualification. Your results build your career.
Every participant completes a supported rail-focused ROI project as part of their development. Every project targets your operational challenges. Every assignment enhances departmental KPIs. Every qualification comes with verified ROI. Because the best way to master operations is by delivering real time operational excellence.
Programme highlights
- 8 industry-relevant high performance workshops focused practical action
- One-to-one executive coaching and group coaching
- Access to 30+ Elective Workshops
- Psychometric profiling and skills assessment to sharpen leadership style
- ‘Track & Trade’ leadership exchange – experience other parts of the industry
- Deliver a live strategic business project that generates ROI
- 17 month programme + 3 months End Point Assessment
- Optional of a CMI Level 5 award, certificate or diploma
What to expect
Our Rail Industry High Performance Leader programme provides real tools you’ll actually use to:
Drive operational performance
Transform metrics through proven methodologies
Make strategic decisions
Connect daily operations to business strategy
Lead through change
Full programme through apprenticeship funding, no cost to you
Executive-level development
Keep teams performing while everything transforms
Optimise resources
Do more with less without burning people out
Navigate stakeholder politics
Get buy-in and resources for what matters
Gain Chartered Manager status
With optional CMI qualifications
High Performance Workshops
Eight High Performance Workshops: Eight operational game-changers. No irrelevant theory. No fluff. Just practical tools for operational excellence:
- The Game-Changer: Turn Potential Into Performance
- The Trust Builder: Build Relationships That Deliver Value
- The Influencer: Make Communication Count
- The Connector: Link Activity To Results
- The Strategist: Turn Ideas Into Outcomes
- The Maximiser: Deliver Resource Solutions
- The Pathfinder: Move Forward and Remove Barriers
- The Multiplier: Lead Talent and High-Performing Teams
The programme has given me the skills and confidence to lead more effectively. By applying what I learned, I’ve improved efficiency, boosted morale, expanded the team through a robust business case – and most importantly, we have reduced line safety incidents by 40%.
Michael Knott, Lead Competence Development Manager | GTR
Track & Trade
A new and completely unique component of the Level 5 Rail Industry Programme is our game-changing Track & Trade initiative – an innovative online dashboard which allows participants to ‘trade skills’, share hands-on expertise and experience other areas of the network.
Expect practical, peer-to-peer collaboration that grows your impact, broadens your knowledge and positions you at the forefront of the industry’s future. This isn’t theory – Track & Trade goes beyond workshops, connecting senior leaders across the sector to unlock insights and practical learning you can use immediately.
The initiative is now live.
In September, the first trade took place, with two rail Project Managers exchanging expertise: one sought insights on national plant and machinery resource planning, while the other enhanced their knowledge of work bank planning to help reduce costs and minimise disruption.
With Track & Trade you can:
Offer a trade:
Share your expertise – show a colleague what’s working in your process, planning, or innovation to help them learn and improve.
Post a need:
Say what you want to learn – connect with peers who can share insights on resource planning, work management or new industry perspectives.
Deliver Impact:
Wrap up each exchange with an Impact summary, turning individual learning into network-wide performance gains.
Build industry-wide connections:
Someone in the industry may already be solving your challenge. Stop silo working and start sharing knowledge and know-how across the network.
Built for operational leaders ready to excel:
- Aspiring Operations Managers – Build capabilities before the promotion
- Current Operations Managers – Master the jump from managing tasks to leading strategically
- Department Heads – Sharpen strategic thinking whilst delivering today
- Level 3 Graduates – Natural progression in your leadership journey
- Technical Specialists – Add operational leadership to technical expertise
Elective Workshops: Unlimited access. Zero waste.
Your apprenticeship includes unlimited access to our complete elective portfolio. Book what you need. Skip what you don’t. From handling tomorrow’s difficult conversation to understanding this quarter’s P&L. From leading next month’s transformation to building the innovation culture your CEO demands. Every elective solves specific challenges with immediate application. Because apprenticeship time should solve real problems.
Achieve real results:
0 %
Participant pass rate through practical application
0 %
Participants achieve distinctions solving real challenges
£ 0 m+
Verified returns from participant projects £4+ ROI for every £1 of levy invested
Support from people who’ve been there
- Facilitators who’ve run operations at scale
- Coaches who understand operational pressure
- Dedicated Learning Manager ensuring smooth progress
- Peer groups facing identical challenges
- Platform designed around operational realities
- No academic theorists. Just practitioners who’ve delivered operational excellence
Gain recognition
You’re already delivering results. Now get recognised for it. The UK’s only Level 5 tailored specifically to the rail industry. Where practical tools solve real-world problems. Where levy funding drives organisational transformation. Where qualifications recognise reality.
Operational excellence starts with exceptional development.
Every day without proper development is another day of operational stress. Your department deserves strategic leadership. So do you. Join 5000+ high performing leaders who chose practical over theoretical.
One question matters:
Are you ready to transform operations, not just manage them?
Fuel Learning – Ofsted Outstanding provider (2025). 93% distinction rate, £60m+ ROI projects delivered by participants across Level 3 – Level 7 programmes.