Press release -
GTR fundraiser recognised for Grenfell charity work
An employee engagement manager at Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR) has won the RBF “Heart of Gold” Award for Charity at the RailStaff Awards.
Paula Hilliard, who lives in Peterborough, was the driving force behind a fundraising effort to help those affected by the Grenfell Tower fire. In less than a week, a team of around 50 volunteers organised collections at some of the largest stations on the GTR network and raised more than £12,500.
Paula coordinates the operator’s programme with The Prince’s Trust, which offers employment opportunities to young people from the local community, and also oversees the company’s other charity fundraising activities.
Referring to the Grenfell collections, Paula, who has worked within the rail industry for 21 years, said: “It was just something that everybody wanted to get involved in, but we had to turn it round really quickly because we wanted to make sure the money got there as quickly as possible.”
She added: "I am really humbled to have won this award. I see my job as a team effort, supported by station managers, frontline teams and head office.
“I’m proud to work for GTR - it really is a great company which does a lot to help people less fortunate; the work I do genuinely wouldn't be possible without the support that I get from across the business. Because of this, this award has been accepted on behalf of everyone in the company that's helped to raise money, or supported with The Prince's Trust programme.”
Charles Horton, GTR’s Chief Executive Officer, said: "Many congratulations to all our colleagues who received richly deserved nominations for the RailStaff Awards.
“Paula has worked tirelessly with young people as part of GTR’s 'Get into Railways' programme with The Prince’s Trust, and more recently has organised fundraising support for a number of young football teams.
“I would also like to recognise and warmly congratulate our other shortlisted colleagues and teams who have all worked so hard. It’s great to see them commended by the wider industry.”
The award was sponsored by the Railway Benefit Fund (RBF) - a charity which provides support to its rail industry members in times of need.
Faye Jaques, fundraising manager at RBF, said: “The quality of nominations was just fantastic this year. Each entry truly showed what a wonderful industry we work in and highlighted the exact personalities we wanted to celebrate, those with a real heart of gold.”
The RailStaff Awards, which was held on October 7 at Coventry’s Ricoh Arena, celebrates the achievements of the individuals and teams who work in the rail sector.
Tom O’Connor, from event organiser Rail Media, said: “The RailStaff Awards is now in its 11th year but it feels as relevant as ever. We’re always humbled by the stories behind our winners and honoured to give something back to the industry. We must also thank our sponsors for making the night possible and everyone who attended for such a memorable evening.”
Ends
Notes to editors
For more information abot Govia Thameslink Railway email press.office@gtrailway.com or call
Southern and Gatwick Express press office: 0203 750 2030
Thameslink and Great Northern press office: 0203 750 2031
For more information about the RailStaff Awards contact:
Marc Johnson - 01530 816453/ 07966 510418 (marc@rail-media.com) or Stewart Thorpe - 01530 816453 (stewart@rail-media.com)
RailStaff
Established in 1997, RailStaff is a monthly magazine distributed to those who work in the UK rail industry.
The RailStaff Awards recognises the heroism and dedication of the thousands of men and women who run Britain’s railways. This includes drivers, cleaners, signallers, planners and track workers.
The RailStaff Awards is a Rail Media event. For more information about all this year's nominees and winners visit the RailStaff Awards website.
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Govia Thameslink Railway
Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR) operates Thameslink, Great Northern, Southern and Gatwick Express services as follows:
- Thameslink – services between Bedford and Brighton, Luton/St Albans and Sutton, Wimbledon and Sevenoaks
- Great Northern – services between London and Welwyn, Hertford, Peterborough, Cambridge and King’s Lynn
- Southern – services between London and the Sussex coast (Brighton, Worthing, Eastbourne, Bognor Regis, Hastings) and parts of Surrey, Kent and Hampshire (Ashford International, Southampton, Portsmouth)
- Gatwick Express – fast, non-stop direct services between Gatwick Airport and London Victoria
GTR is the largest rail franchise in the UK in terms of passenger numbers, trains, revenue and staff. The operator carries about 326 million passenger journeys per year, and employs around 6,500 people. Its aim is to improve services across all four networks.
Ticket revenue is passed to the government, which pays GTR a fee to operate the franchise. The fee is adjusted according to how well the train service is performing.
Southern has the fastest passenger growth in the UK with numbers into London having doubled in 12 years - compared with the industry as a whole doubling over the past 20 years. To meet this growth and to future-proof the network, GTR is modernising the rail service for passengers.
GTR has introduced more new trains in the past year than all other franchises put together, with 500 new carriages so far.
The transformative £7bn Thameslink Programme will bring hundreds more daily services from 2018, increasing the number of trains though the central London core from up to 15 to 24 trains per hour. Network Rail has also launched a £300m programme to improve resilience across the GTR network.
GTR is modernising how it works, with new technology in use at our stations and on our trains, smartcard ticketing and a new, flexible on-board role on many Southern services. This ensures fewer cancellations, and with more staff on board our trains now than ever before, passengers are enjoying a much better level of on-board customer service.
The GTR investment programme for stations includes funding for more CCTV, toilet refurbishments, new retail facilities, help points and car park improvements – as well as plans for increased motorcycle storage and improved transport integration.
