David Tyson Memorial Fund
About the Fund
The David Tyson Memorial Fund was established in 2017 to support young people pursuing careers in rail engineering and related engineering disciplines. Funding is focused on supporting young people who are experiencing financial disadvantage and who may not otherwise have the opportunity to explore a career in engineering.
A Legacy of Excellence in Rail Engineering
The fund was created in memory of David Tyson (1948–2015), a highly respected permanent way engineer whose expertise shaped major railway projects in the UK and overseas. Known for his remarkable ability to design seamless track alignments, David was a Fellow of the Permanent Way Institution and a valued mentor who inspired many young engineers. His contributions to track engineering software development remain widely used in the industry today.
Supporting Young Engineers
The David Tyson Memorial Fund provides grants between £100 – £500 to encourage and support young people aged 14- 25 from Surrey and surrounding counties to pursue careers in railway engineering. This includes core engineering subjects such as electrical, mechanical, civil engineering, as well as related disciplines like architecture, electrification, BIM/digital 3D modelling.
Funding can help young people to:
Explore their options for further study/careers in railway, civil or mechanical engineering and/or those supporting disciplines for railway system design.
Undertake relevant vocational training, apprenticeships, work experience placements, and/or undergraduate degrees
Attend course or events designed to increase the ‘pipeline’ of young people considering a career in railway engineering.
In exceptional cases, awards of up to £1,000 may be considered.
What can the funding be used for?
✔ Course fees and accreditation
✔ Essential study resources (books, software)
✔ Travel to courses and training sites
✔ Specialist equipment, tools, or materials
✔ Work-based training costs
Grant awards can be made payable to the trainer / provider of your course or activity.
What cannot be funded?
Funding is not normally available for anything that has already been paid for or taken place. Please make sure you wait for the outcome of your application before you start an activity or book a course that incurs costs.
Please also note that we cannot necessarily support all applications fully. We therefore recommend that you also look at other funding avenues and tell us about your other fundraising.
If you are a young person looking for support to move towards an identified goal in education, training, apprenticeship, or employment, in a discipline other than engineering, please look at the Surrey Young People’s Fund at this may be able to help.
Making an Impact
The fund has already helped many aspiring engineers achieve their goals. By removing financial barriers, the fund enables young people to develop the skills, confidence, and qualifications needed for a successful career in engineering.
Grant Recipient
“The David Tyson Memorial Fund provided me with invaluable financial support throughout my university journey, alleviating the burden of educational expenses. Thanks to their generosity, I could focus on my studies without constant financial worries, paving the way for a successful academic experience.”
How to Apply
Applications are open year-round, and there is no closing date.
Eligible applicants must be:
✔ Aged 16–25 and motivated to pursue a career in engineering
✔ Resident in Surrey or within 25 miles of the county (for general engineering applications)
✔ Resident in England and studying rail engineering (for rail-specific applications)
Applications are reviewed by a dedicated Fund Panel. Where appropriate, we will contact you to obtain any further information. Outcomes are typically provided within six weeks.
Send completed application forms to grants@cfsurrey.org.uk
David Tyson’s Legacy
Through this fund, David’s passion for rail engineering continues to inspire and support future generations. His dedication to innovation, mentoring, and skill development lives on, ensuring that young engineers have the resources and opportunities to succeed.
David Tyson (1948 – 2015) was a highly respected permanent way engineer who became an established figurehead and head of discipline for several railway consultants and who successfully established and managed the permanent way departments of several companies. With his expansive railway knowledge, intuition and unparalleled flair for track design, he influenced major railway projects and inspired many colleagues both in the UK and overseas. He was also a Fellow of the Permanent Way Institution.
David had a natural eye for track layouts and alignments and towards the latter stages of his career was virtually peerless in his ability to see a smooth line and to realise it effortlessly through a nimbly draughted sketch. A sixth sense for how a train rides the track was equally his gift and this culminated in the writing of sophisticated computer programs that not only married the modern world with his understanding of the first principles of track engineering but also belied an acknowledged and envied skill in the ability to develop complex software tools. This was one of his many strong points and often seemingly a passion that ran alongside his continued love for building model railways.
Such was his experience and knowledge, to have David involved in a project was considered as having one of the very best in the business and this was reflected in the high regard in which he was very quickly held by those with whom he worked for the first time, including clients. His attention to detail, together with a generous attitude and easy manner, lent themselves to a highly effective application of track engineering know-how to complex and high-profile projects. While working on the HS2 project, on which he was the lead track engineer for Parsons Brinckerhoff for over two years, he conceived and wrote an advanced software tool for the in-depth analysis of track geometry. This remains in extensive use today and leads the way in processing substantial volumes of alignment data with unsurpassed efficiency, in-built intelligence and the means for indicating compliance with a variety of standards and recognised good practice.
Images: Track Design Drawings by David Tyson
His attributes made him a natural and effective mentor and with his inspiration and caring nature his students and team members gravitated towards him. He was able to assemble and lead teams wherever he worked. Track engineers felt privileged to work for David and his teams were dedicated to him.
Outside work, David seemed to have countless varied interests, and an energy and adventurous spirit that put many a younger man to shame. He owned his own yacht on which he lived and worked with his wife, Elif, for several years in Turkey. A keen traveller, he embarked on European road trips in their motor-home. David was also a guitar player and photographer and tried his hand at painting, and of course continued to turn his hand to model railway building.
Written by Tony Jory, friend and colleague