We’re delighted to share that Colas Rail UK has become Gold Partners with the Rail Safe Friendly (RSF) initiative to promote rail safety to schoolchildren.
RSF was established as a digital education provider on the dangers of trespassing on the railways to at the time of writing, over 4,000 schools nationwide.
The initiative was set up in early 2023 by Learn Live following the collaboration of Colas Rail UK, Learn Live and Network Rail (NR) on Harrison’s Story as part of NR’s ‘You Vs Train’ campaign. Harrison’s Story is the cautionary tale of Harrison Ballantine, who tragically passed away retrieving a football from a nearby train depot.
Educating children about safety on or near the railway is close to the heart of Colas Rail’s core values. Harrison’s mum Elizabeth is a close friend of Laura Cook, Rail Services Fatigue Manager at Colas Rail UK, such a tragic event within our industry instigated an educational project led by Colas Rail in conjunction with Network Rail, which has since grown and evolved into the RSF initiative. We are thrilled to continue our efforts in supporting the project and becoming a Gold Member, sponsoring 150 schools across the UK to teach their pupils how to stay safe around railway tracks.
Colas Rail UK CEO, Jean-Pierre Bertrand said “Caring for our site neighbours and local communities is at the core of our culture and the RSF initiative embodies this perfectly.
“We’re delighted to be joining as gold members and playing our part to share these crucial safety messages to schools across the UK.”
Speaking about the event and the importance of this partnership, Colas Rail UK Fatigue Manager, Laura Cook said “We have to ensure that this never happens to another child, to another family.
“There are so many dangers on the railway that people outside of the industry would not be aware of, at some point in life every child will be near a railway and need to be aware of these dangers and the possible consequences.”
Stuart Heaton, Managing Director of Rail Safe Friendly and Learn Live, said: “We are delighted to welcome Colas Rail UK to the RSF programme. Through their support we will be able to reach even more children with vital rail safety awareness with the aim of saving lives and preventing injuries on the country’s rail network and in yards, depots and sidings.
“It is crucial that children receive vital knowledge, at a young age, to keep them rail safe. The RSF programme seeks to educate children and young people on the many dangers that are present on the railway.”
Notes to Editors
Picture 1: The Rail Safe Friendly Gold Disc Presentation, from left to right:
- Colas Rail UK CEO, Jean-Pierre Bertrand
- Colas Rail UK Head of Plant Operations, Tony Birrell
- Learn Live UK Managing Director, Stuart Heaton
- Colas Rail UK Freight Director, Simon Ball
- Mother of Harrison Ballantyne and Harrison’s Story campaigner, Elizabeth Ballantyne
- Colas Rail Head of Freight Operations, Sep Semsarzadeh
- Mayor of Rugby, Cllr Simon Ward
If you would like more information on this press release, please get in touch with Jason Eves, Colas Rail UK Marketing and Communications Manager at marketing@colasrail.com
For more Colas Rail UK news please visit:
