Swapping a family Christmas for work

While most people have been winding down over the festive period, Dan Slater from Stourbridge in the West Midlands was one of about 20,000 railway workers who was at work on Christmas Day and Boxing Day.

Mr Slater has been involved in a decade-long programme to replace crossings and switches and he has worked on the last 10 Christmas Days.

He said his colleagues can be "a bit down" at first, but there is a good team spirit.

But Martin Frobisher from Network Rail said the work was necessary to maintain the railways.

Midlands Today's Laura May McMullen reports.