As one of the largest train operating companies in the UK, we generate thousands of jobs and add significant economic value to the communities across the network.

People are at the heart of what we do. Our ambition is to build employability skills and personal confidence in the communities we serve. We do this by working in partnership with charities undertaking social mobility projects, by providing work experience, offering school talks and through our apprenticeship and graduate schemes.

The Talent Foundry

The Talent Foundry are a national charity who champion and increase social mobility by helping young people from underserved backgrounds discover what they are amazing at, develop valuable new employment skills and take their first step into the world of work.

We are delighted to be working with the Talent foundry and are currently in the process of piloting a railway careers programme with them.

Teacher Encounters Programme

As part of the Careers and Enterprise Company, we welcome teachers into our workplace to engage directly with us to learn about the career pathways relevant to their subjects. Teachers can then use their new insights to help students build a better understanding of opportunities to connect learning to future jobs. The teacher encounters can take many forms from a couple of hours understanding the diverse range of roles within the railway industry to face to face visits and tours of station, depots and workplaces.

We want to support as many organisations as possible across our network that support people impacted by homelessness.

The number of people sleeping on the streets in Britain has increased substantially in the past few years, but rough sleeping is just the most visible part of a much wider homelessness pandemic, with many people using foodbanks on a daily basis. We have a large role to play to support our communities, who provide support for people in need. What we can do to help is make the most of our network, used by thousands of people each day, to reach those who are willing to help. We pledge to support our local partners, including:

• Foodbanks and kitchens
• Homeless provisions and prevention services
• Fundraising initiatives

Our teams have held food banks, donation drives, fundraising cake sales and helped out in the kitchen at local shelters.

We want to support and promote positive mental health for our customers, communities and colleagues.

Studies show that 1 in 4 people are impacted by mental health issues at some point in their lives.
As a business it is important that we can recognise the signs when someone is in trouble – to reach out and help our customers, communities and colleagues who may be dealing with mental health issues.

We also work closely with the Samaritans and host annual ‘Have a brew’ events, as well as promoting general health and wellbeing for our teams. We want to do more, such as:

• Expanding our try-a-train programme that encourages people to feel confident travelling by train
• Fundraising for organisations and charities that support positive mental health
• Provide a platform for organisations to raise awareness of mental health and general health care causes

Communities across our network use the railway on a daily basis; getting to work, travelling to school, family days out or visiting a friend. Our network also brings people together in more way that one. Our stations also play an active role in uniting people in local communities.

Many of our stations host local organisations or volunteer groups; providing opportunities for people to come together to improve the station environment.

There’s a great variety of projects across our route, but all are designed to benefit the community, the station and our passengers. Examples include:

• Improving the look of a station through a gardening project
• Adding extra colour through community artwork
• Introducing a book swap
• Community rail partnerships

Community Rail Partnerships

Community Rail Partnerships (CRPs) are not-for-profit organisations that connect the railway with the communities they serve. They were initially set up to encourage people to use their railways, especially during off-peak times.

Today, CRPs works closely with train operators across the country, developing stations and supporting local economies.

We’re proud to provide support and core funding for 4 Community Rail Partnerships across Great Northern, Southern, and Thameslink.

What do Community Rail Partnerships do?

Each CRP has a steering group made up of local stakeholders, who agree an activity plan for their partnership. Their activities often include:

• Encouraging and supporting station partners
• Working with us to promote Try aTrain days
• Work with us to promote local tourism
• Other initiatives that promote rail travel and the possibilities it offers

We have six community rail partnerships across our network.

Discover our local initiatives of corporate social responsibility, to benefit communities across our network by visiting the official sites for our companies:

• CSR at Southern Railway
• CSR at Thameslink Railway
• CSR at Great Northern Rail
• CSR at Gatwick Express

Our commitment to a sustainable future

As a company, we are committed to taking environment and energy concerns into account in all our decisions. As we work towards minimising the environmental impact of our business, we’re guided by our Environment Energy Policy.

Related resources

Environment Energy Statement PDF • 203.1 KB

GTR’s latest Social Impact Report covers the 15-month period from January 2024 to March 2025, to align our reporting cycle with our business year. This means we can report more effectively across a full operational year going forward. This year’s report describes how we are delivering social impact across five workstreams: Cohesive Communities and Place, Education, Employability and Confidence Building, Diversity and Inclusion, Environmental Sustainability, and Positive Mental Health. These workstreams were selected as they matter to our colleagues, customers, and communities, and because they are areas where we can make the greatest social impact, now, and in the future.

Related resources

GTR Social Value Report PDF • 3.6 MB