An outstanding unsung hero…
Carillion’s JAMES STEELE has gained National Rail Awards recognition for his efforts in initiating railway safety events, and for getting colleagues involved in helping with local community projects. STEFANIE FOSTER reports
Our industry is home to many unsung heroes - those individuals who are not content simply to do their day job, but who want to change their industry for the better and make their mark on the railway.
Often these special people receive little recognition outside of their own businesses, because the rest of the industry just never knows they exist.
The National Rail Awards’ Outstanding Personal Contribution (OPC) category was established to fill that vacuum, recognising people who go above and beyond in their daily job on the railway and highlighting their achievements to the wider industry.
Carillion’s James Steele is one of these unsung heroes. Currently the head of innovation for Carillion’s Infrastructure division (working on rail, civils and highways), Steele received a National Rail Award in the OPC Management category in September, for the special efforts he has made to help local communities and to improve rail safety.
Steele joined the rail industry in 1998 as an apprentice, and has been working his way up ever since. After a stint as a contractor, he was taken on by Carillion in 2014 and promoted to his current position in October last year. But his rise through the ranks of the industry is only part of his success - Steele has been involved in (and has usually led) a whole host of extra-curricular activities.
At Carillion, every employee receives six days a year of volunteering leave, which can be used to give something back to local communities. Steele realised that many people were not making the most of their volunteering days, and decided to do something about it.
“We’re not told to go and do them - they’re optional. But I’ve tried to encourage everyone to use their six days,” Steele tells RAIL.
“All the public see is that we’re going out there causing a nuisance and making a noise. But there is another side to us, and helping out
Network Rail’s lifesaving rules should be ingrained in everyone’s mind - the ‘everyone going home safe everyday’ mantra. But you still hear of people suffering. I wanted to do something about it. James Steele, Head of Innovation, Carillion Infrastructure
in the community helps them see that.”
Steele decided to contact the Derbyshire Wildlife Trust (DWT) to determine if there was anything Carillion could do to help.
“I just gave them a call one day and got to know one of the reserve officers. During that first few months, while we were swapping ideas, she probably felt like it was great but it was never going to happen. Then there were 30 to 40 cars arriving - the real ‘Orange Army’ that we’re often referred to as. We blew them away.”
DWT is a charitable organisation, relying on membership, sponsorship and donations. Steele inspired people within Carillion and its supply chain partners to come together in a large group to help out with the Trust’s projects. Local working groups of volunteers to the Trust are usually made up of about ten people, but Steele wanted to do better than that.
“We’ve been able to pull together between 50 and 100 people at a time to go onto a reserve for a day and really make a difference - clear vegetation, whatever needed doing. That makes a difference to more than just the DWT - it means the local community can get out with their families and use the reserves more than they could before.
“We’ve even been present when there’s been members of the public involved in these working groups. We’ve worked with them - just talking to them, getting to know them. Sometimes they want to ask us some questions while we’re there. It gives them a better understanding of what we do and the environments that we work in, and an appreciation that we work out there in all weathers, trying to make their journey better for them.”
Over four years, Carillion and its partners have contributed in the region of £ 200,000 worth of volunteering to the DWT - in manhours, and in donations of materials and tools. Steele comments on the difference this can also make back at base in Carillion: “If you’ve spent a day clearing the undergrowth together, the next time you come to a meeting, it flows much easier.”
Encouraged by the success of the DWT initiative, Steele decided to look for other causes that needed help. He set up a number of foodbank appeals for donations, and then went into a local foodbank to help out on the front line.
“The Corby Foodbank was probably one of the toughest things I’ve ever done.”
Steele pauses: “We try and look at areas where we can help people. This one particular occasion, I went and had a morning helping to prepare food parcels. I was there on a day the foodbank was open and that was quite tough, actually seeing and experiencing it.
“You realise that life is really difficult for some people. It wasn’t just about being there and putting a few tins and bits into a cardboard box or plastic bag, you actually realise how much difference you make to others. James Steele, Head of Innovation, Carillion Infrastructure
“You realise that life is really difficult for some people. It wasn’t just about being there and putting a few tins and bits into a cardboard box or plastic bag, you actually realise how much difference you make to others.
“It was really quite emotional. As a father with three children, seeing families coming into a foodbank with their children is quite hard. We went back and supported them on another couple of occasions, and now others have stepped in. And as far as I’m aware, those things are still happening.”
Steele is modest about the essential role he has played in these projects, but reluctantly admits he is glad to have been instrumental in setting the wheels in motion.
“One of the key things about working in the railway is collaboration. Teamwork, being able to get along with people - not just your colleagues, but stakeholders and the supply chain as well. We should all treat each other fairly, with respect, and knowing that what you’re about to do is going to make a difference. That’s what Carillion is all about. We do what our strapline says - we make tomorrow a better place.”
With that in mind, the main achievement that propelled Steele to NRA recognition is something intrinsic to the rail industry. While everyone else is enjoying their Christmas dinner and opening presents with their family, thousands of railway staff are out upgrading the infrastructure, working hard to make the network better for all those passengers who will be back using it on January 2. But Steele recognised a problem…
“There’s a high degree of people who normally work in the East Midlands who will have been working for other companies or other parts of Carillion over the Christmas period. They don’t actually get a break. I took this as an opportunity to get people to stop, rethink, reset their minds, and get off to a good start of the year in a safe manner.”
From that thought, SafeStart was born. Taking place every January, the event allows individuals a moment to stop and think about safety after a busy Christmas, and to see parts of the industry outside of their own immediate remit.
Says Steele: “Network Rail’s lifesaving rules should be ingrained in everyone’s mind - the ‘everyone going home safe everyday’ mantra. But you still hear of people suffering. I wanted to do something about it. I wanted to think of a way where I could get everyone in the same room for one day at the start of the year, to say ‘this is the work that we’re going to deliver and this is what we want to do from a safety point of view’.”
Beyond a series of talks about different aspects of health and safety, the events attract exhibitors from across the supply chain to promote collaborative working, with a focus on safety.
“When I did the first event in 2014, it was mainly for the Carillion workforce. I got about 20 to 30 exhibitors. The supply chain has always struggled to get in front of the ‘boots on ballast’ guys who go out there and build the new assets. I’m a great believer that our supply chain can help us a lot more if we engage with them more. We’re always trying to work more safely, more efficiently, more effectively. They can help us with innovation and collaborating on finding new ways of doing old things.
“Some members of the NR team who came said they liked it and asked if we were going to do it again. So, I approached the safety leadership team, which comprises the framework directors that run the projects in the East Midlands area. I went and presented to them what I believed and why they should have an integrated, collaborative SafeStart event.
“In January 2015, we had the very first event done for the entire Infrastructure Projects East Midlands teams. The show was unbelievable - I never imagined it being how it turned out. We had around 900 delegates and 40 exhibitors.”
The event has gone from strength to strength, and Steele is keen to showcase the value of bringing people together in this way, in the hope that other areas of the industry might launch their own version of SafeStart.
At this point, it is important to remember that Steele is not a conference organiser, he is a railway engineer. This was entirely out of his comfort zone, but he tells RAIL: “SafeStart is not a part of my remit and job description, but if you believe so strongly in something, you should continue.”
That drive and belief in doing the right thing is why Steele was awarded by NRA judges. But Steele still can’t see it: “I never thought I’d win. Being absolutely truthful, being awarded with something was fantastic.
“But I’m the sort of person who has always strived to do better - not just for myself, but for the industry. I don’t want to see anybody hurt, anybody not going home at the end of the day. To be rewarded for that is fantastic.
“If you believe something is right, you should follow it and give it everything you’ve got. Try and get as many people and as many companies involved on that journey.”