First Rail Consultancy

A great week for the consultancy, with our Equality Diversity and Inclusion Team being shortlisted for EDI Team of the Year at the RailStaff Awards. We're so proud of their achievements and the positive impact they make on the consultancy. 95% of our workforce currently regard the consultancy as an inclusive place to work and this is in no small part due to their hard work and dedication. Congratulations team! 

We are delighted to announce James Brown has been shortlisted for Rail Engineer of the Year Award at the RailStaff Awards. James has contributed significantly to the advancement of the UK rail industry through his knack for innovation and leadership ability. From his work on developing new battery operated trains, to his interim role as Engineering Manager at the Cable Car. We think he has achieved a remarkable amount in his career so far. Well done James! 

We’re delighted Arthur Ormesher has been nominated for Rail Person of the Year at the Rail Staff Awards Arthur has demonstrated exceptional dedication, innovative thinking, and leadership in his role as workstream sponsor on a bid. This was not a conventional rail bid, but a complex, ground-breaking project endeavour to design, build, and operate a completely new rail route, planning for the future and looking to technology that doesn’t yet exist. Arthur worked across a team that included operators from France and Spain, as well as infrastructure partners in the UK and Canada. Arthur effectively managed his team, ensuring clarity and consistency throughout the project. He remained calm under pressure, and always had a smile on his face, able to pick people up when things got tough. His role in the successful submission of the bid attests to his ability to bring together disparate elements, reconcile varying ideas, and drive a team towards a common goal. We think this is a huge achievement! If you would like to find out more and vote for Arthur, click here:

We’re proud to have nominated our EDI Working Group for a RailStaff Awards. Three years ago, its members wanted to spread awareness of the equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI) issues that affected their colleagues’ lives. Through their activities, discussions, presentations, surveys and informal updates to colleagues, they have raised awareness of underreported issues, identified opportunities and made things better. The group members have done their best to redress the gender balance within the rail industry. Our consultancy has a healthy gender balance at senior leadership level and the total ethnic diversity of FRH is 14.4%, just 0.4% behind the 14.8% UK Census figure. If you would like to find out more and vote for our EDI team click here:

First Rail Consultancy is proud to nominate Victoria Tomlinson for the Rail Person of the Year award. Vic has demonstrated exceptional leadership skills and passion for customer experience as project leader on the innovative Customer Experience Vision, created by West Coast Partnership Development and HS2 Ltd. Vic spearheaded the creation of the Customer Experience Vision that places customers at the heart of the journey. Vic used her marketing and brand expertise, which has been developed through the creation of three national rail brands, to ensure that the outcome was bold and inspiring, giving people and teams clear strategic direction. Through Vic’s leadership and dedication, the project has received buy-in from a range of senior industry stakeholders. Even with changes to the scope of the HS2 project since the vision was set, Vic's work stands as a testament to her commitment to customer satisfaction and her ability to unite stakeholders around a single, customer-focused goal. If you want to find out more about what Vic has achieved and vote for her as Rail Person of the year click here:

Meet our Health and Wellbeing Working Group! Since its inception in 2021, the group has worked tirelessly to ensure its colleagues have the tools to lead happier and healthier lives, not just at work but at home too. Whether raising awareness for sensitive issues including pregnancy loss, sharing information about support like our employee assistance programme and Mental Health First Aiders, or encouraging colleagues to get active through ‘Movement Challenges’, the H&W champions go far beyond their day jobs to make FRC a healthier and happier place to work. The twice-yearly ‘Movement Challenges’ bring colleagues together to cover a certain distance in May, and in the darker November days, to exercise for a certain number of hours. The team has virtually travelled the length of Great Britain and the Orient Express route. The challenges have had a huge impact, jumpstarting colleagues’ fitness journeys into running the London Marathon, swimming the Great North Swim and participating in several park runs. The H&WWG prides itself on its inclusivity – the focus isn’t on clocking up miles but about enjoying the journey, with prizes available for most interesting activity and best photo. Find out more about what they do and vote for them in the RailStaff Awards here:

We’re delighted to nominate James Brown for the 2024 Rail Engineer of the Year Award at the RailStaff Awards. James exemplifies outstanding engineering achievement within the consultancy and has contributed significantly to the advancement of the UK rail industry. James is naturally curious and is passionate about innovation and the tangible benefits it can bring to millions of passengers. We think James embodies the spirit of Rail Engineer of the Year. Learn more about James’ impressive rail career and vote for him here: 

We had a great time at innotrans in Berlin. It was great to connect with other industry professionals and chat to them about upcoming opportunities. 

We are looking forward to attending innotrans in Berlin next week. If you're heading over and would like to find out more about First Rail Consultancy, look out for our Bid Director Tom MacLachlan and our Managing Director of Affiliate Businesses Matthew Golton.    See you there!

We're #hiring a Data Insights Analyst 💼 We are recruiting Data Insights Analysts to join the Consultancy's Analysis & Modelling team. The Analysis & Modelling team works with the Consultancy's clients on a wide variety of consultancy and bidding projects to provide persuasive and insightful analysis and develop business initiatives to positively impact both our customers and our operations.