Gatwick Express

When it comes to saving a life, you already have a life-saving kit available to you – your words. Anyone can do it.

Samaritans’ annual Small Talk Saves Lives campaign encourages people to start a simple conversation if they think someone doesn’t look OK - as two in five (44%) of us admit to finding ourselves struggling to cope sometimes.

Newly released research from the su***de prevention charity reveals as a nation, 67% of us say we would appreciate someone checking on us, offering words of support if we were struggling to cope.

Samaritans’ volunteers were out last week with our staff at St Albans, Elstree & Borehamwood, Hatfield, Sandy and Stevenage, and this week will be at Luton, St Neots and Welwyn North, speaking to passengers about the campaign and how their words are a life-saving kit.

We know that people can worry about saying the wrong thing or feel like it's not their place to step in, but it's always better to say something than to say nothing at all.

Small Talk Saves Lives builds on the wider rail industry su***de prevention programme, which has seen Samaritans, in partnership with Network Rail, train over 31,000 rail staff and British Transport Police in su***de prevention, enabling them to identify and support people in need of help.

Nothing to see here, just two train buddies side by side having a ball of a time in Brighton 😉😮‍💨

Side by side 💚❤️

You won’t see a better shot all week of our train joined at the hip (LITERALLY) in Brighton with our friends over at Gatwick Express! 😮‍💨

Thanks for sharing this stunning picture - 🔥

MAKING A CHANGE! 💚🩷💜❤️

On International Women’s Day, we are delighted to announce that we are bringing two new apprenticeship courses to employees to help develop female talent within the business.

Available as Level 3 and Level 5 apprenticeships, the Women in Leadership training programmes will be delivered by education provider, Learnmore, and cover a variety of modules to upskill and empower women in the workplace.

Whilst rail companies are doing more to attract and retain female talent, the industry as a whole is still largely dominated by men, with women accounting for just over 17% of the total workforce. Our number is higher, at around 20%, but there is still a way to go to close the gap.

Last year, we saw a 50 per cent increase in the number of female employees taking on apprenticeships and we hope this trend will continue with the launch of these new female-focused training courses.

Keep your eyes peeled on our social channels throughout the day as we bring you some of the remarkable stories of our women apprentices.

Happy Valentine’s Day! ❤️

Spread the Love this Valentine’s Day with Railway 200’s Chocolate Hearts 💚

This Valentine’s Day, the SCRP is spreading joy and cheer to passengers across the rail networks. In celebration of the season of love, SCRP will be giving away specially branded Railway 200 chocolate hearts to commuters. These sweet treats aim to brighten the day of passengers, offering a small moment of kindness and warmth as they travel.

“Valentine’s Day is about connection, and we want to bring a little love to everyone on their journey,” said a spokesperson for SCRP. “Whether you’re heading home, to work, or out for a day of adventure, these chocolate hearts are our way of showing appreciation to all the passengers who keep the railways moving.”

The Railway 200 branded chocolate hearts will be handed out at key stations and on trains throughout the network. So, keep an eye out for a little extra sweetness this Valentine’s Day – you might just get a delicious surprise!

Check out Nicola’s amazing story ahead of National Apprenticeship Week ❤️

After working at a plumbing company for ten years, Nicola Wilkinson wanted to take her career in a new direction and joined our transport family as a revenue control officer in 2016.

Fast-forward nine years and Nicola, 53, has completed three apprenticeships with us to help progress her career. Nicola, who lives in Ampthill, is sharing her story ahead of National Apprenticeship Week (10-16 February).

“Before I joined the railway, I was working in an administrative role at a plumbing company specialising in emergency call outs. It was great experience, because I learnt how to work in high-pressure situations and delegate jobs to engineers, but after a decade in the same role I wanted to challenge myself with a new career.

“I’d heard great things about the railway through my friend and was interested in working in a customer-facing role, so I wanted to try it for myself.”

After just six months of working in rail, Nicola seized the opportunity to begin her first apprenticeship - the Level 2 Customer Services Practitioner. Eager to bolster her skills further, Nicola dived into the Level 3 Customer Services Specialist apprenticeship in 2018 after successfully applying to be a Passenger Host at Luton – her current role.

“Shortly after I joined, I was keen to develop my customer service skills, which is when I found the Level 2 apprenticeship. I enjoyed the course so much that I wanted to continue expanding my knowledge, so I enrolled on the Level 3 Customer Services Specialist apprenticeship. I had also just started my new Passenger Host role and wanted to become more confident with my decision-making; I finished the apprenticeship feeling that I could deliver high quality customer service and had a much better understanding of how the company operates.”

In 2021, Nicola started the Team Leader Level 3 apprenticeship with the aim to progress to a management role. Having completed the course in 2023, she’s now urging other people to take on an apprenticeship to upskill and develop their talent.

Amazing effort 👏

What an achievement! 💪

January may be over but February has started in the best possible way!

On each and every one of the 31 days in January, many of our colleagues moved 31 minutes for Mind, the mental health charity we’re supporting as a business.

Each year, one in four of us will experience a mental health difficulty. Exercise is hugely important for our physical and mental wellbeing, so it was wonderful to see so many people from across the network getting out and about, ‘Moving For Mind’, and getting involved.

Although the main aim wasn’t to raise money, our brilliant team raised a fantastic £2,504 for Mind, which will go directly to supporting people who are experiencing mental health crisis.

💚🩷❤️💜

Memories of a lifetime ❤️

That moment when you see your name on the information screen at London Victoria 💚😎

We LOVE this picture of our recently retired train driver John Doyle, who completed 41 years of service with Southern last week.

What a journey it has been 🚆

Doing our bit for the environment ♥️

DOING OUR BIT FOR THE ENVIRONMENT! 🩷

We are extremely proud to say that our staff uniform recycling scheme has helped save enough energy to drive from Peterborough to Cape Town in a petrol-powered car, preventing 2.4 tonnes of greenhouse emissions from entering the atmosphere.

620 sacks of our personalised clothing has been recycled in the past year through an advanced process called material reclamation – giving textiles a second chance instead of going to landfill.

Our branded garments, gear and shoes alongside Southern, Great Northern and Gatwick Express, have all been turned into products such as mattress filling and sound buffering for cars, saving enough energy to charge 194,032 smartphones, or drive 6,112 miles in a petrol-powered car, in turn preventing the emission of 2,400kg of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.

We’re passionate about reducing the environmental impact of what we do, and as part of our long-term commitment to reducing waste we’re thinking about the way we use resources across our business.

Each of our members of staff that require uniform will be able to return it when it’s no longer needed so that it can be sent for recycling. Not only is this enabling us to think about resources in a more circular way, but also contributes to reductions in our carbon emissions in alignment with our 2050 net zero goals.

Classy touch from the Southern team as they recognise an employee for 41 years of service to our railway ♥️

THINGS YOU LOVE TO SEE! 💚

Last week, a commuter travelling through London Victoria station came across this wonderful message of appreciation from our station management team as Epsom driver John Doyle completed 41 years of service with Southern.

His final trip from Horsham, marked his final journey with us as he prepares to enjoy his retirement and embark on new adventures beyond the railway.

As the station information screen highlights, we would like to thank & congratulate John for his dedication and outstanding contributions over the decades.

We couldn’t be prouder 💚

[Credit - Tom Bowell on X]

Amazing news! 👏

WHAT A START TO THE MORNING! 😮‍💨

We’re extremely thrilled for our colleague, Leigh Santamaria, who officially qualified as a train driver with Southern at the end of 2024.

Leigh joined us via the Career Returners scheme after she’d been out of work for 10 years caring for her daughter who has significant learning difficulties.

Leigh will be driving the routes between London, East Grinstead, East Croydon and Epsom Downs so look out for her on a train near you!

Congratulations, Leigh! 💚

Who needs Ted, when you have Gatsby! 🥰🐻

Five years on after being part of our 35th anniversary celebrations at Gatwick Express, our loveable and adventurous friend Gatsby has been living life while jet-setting around the world! ✈️

From enjoying the Spanish sun and getting a healthy dose of Vitamin D, to taking in some breathtaking views - Gatsby couldn’t be more happier!

Be more like Gatsby and immerse yourself in new experiences 😉