Railway Benefit Fund

Providing vital support for railway people and their families

“WHY does rail need a charity?” is a refrain I frequently hear. I respond by saying that every four minutes someone, somewhere in rail, reaches out to the Railway Benefit Fund for support and help.

This fact alone highlights the scale of the need we serve. Our mission and focus, as the UK’s only designated railway charity for financial support, is how we best meet the growing demand for our services.

RAIL readers will know that Railway Benefit Fund (RBF) is the only charity providing financial, social and welfare support exclusively to people in the rail industry and their families. And our assistance extends not just to current, former and retired workers in passenger rail, but to the wider rail supply chain as well as freight and ancillary services.

Last year, RBF helped nearly 1,000 rail families with direct financial support, handing out more than £280,000 in grants. A further 3,000 families were supported by RBF with advice, information, signposting, and referrals.

Railwaymen and women are often enduring very real difficulty when they contact us, so it’s vital that our experienced team of professionals provides the right support at the right level.

The old adage asserts that prevention is better than cure, so we strive to help people before they get into a crisis situation. We do this by using a range of early intervention tools such as budgeting advice, emotional support, and signposting to the right legal and welfare agencies as appropriate.

People approach us from all areas of the railway - including train operators, rolling stock companies, and the wider rail industry. Many are trade union members. It’s not infrequent for them to be current rail employees and workers in their 30s or 40s, with young families. All of us do well to remember that a colleague or person we speak to in a depot or a station may be going home to a house they can’t afford to heat, or relying on food banks to feed their children.

Wider economic and inflationary pressures make matters additionally challenging and add to the hardship faced by many rail staff.

For example, Sally is a Customer Host living in Derby with her four children. She contacted us recently. Although she works full time, she also relies on benefits. Budgets are tight and there is little left over at the end of each month.

When Sally had an unexpected car repair costing in excess of £1,000, she found herself in debt and unable to pay her rent and other essential bills. Six months later, the accumulated debt led to a potential eviction notice - and this is when she turned to RBF.

She said: “The RBF helped me when I was going through a really tough time and living in fear of losing my home. With their assistance I managed to keep a roof over my head, pay some priority debts, and put food on the table for my children. I don’t know what I would have done without their help.”

Jason was a rail apprentice sleeping in his car every night. He was literally homeless when he turned to us. Circumstances such as a family breakdown and lack of money to put down a deposit on a flat meant that Jason was desperately holding things together during the day to try and complete his rail apprenticeship, and then going ‘home’ to his car at night to eat sandwiches and crisps for his evening meal. RBF came to his place of work to do a presentation on financial resilience, and later that week he got in touch.

Jason said: “I didn’t know anything about the RBF until I went to the presentation. It took a lot for me to make that call, but I was so desperate and had nowhere else to turn. There was no judgement, just support and guidance to turn my situation around.”

These cases demonstrate the RBF’s role in supporting those most in need and how our tools and interventions can help build financial and emotional resilience.

Rail is, of course, a fantastic industry with great people and a vibrant future. The many employers and companies across the industry who I regularly speak to are vigilant and hugely supportive of their staff.

However, the cost-of-living crisis is having an impact on all industries - and rail is no exception. A regrettable and inevitable consequence of this is that further assistance will be required in the weeks and months ahead, as families turn to the RBF for help and support.

The rising cost of energy is bringing huge anxiety and uncertainty to millions of people ahead of the winter months.

Recognising this, the RBF has recently launched a dedicated Energy Support Fund. This fund is designed to help those railway people and their families who are most in need, with a one-off payment of up to £200 to provide support with the cost of gas and electricity bills.

We are already experiencing significant demand for the Energy Support Fund which will only increase as the winter season really starts to bite. Like every charity, we rely solely on donations and community support to enable us to help those who need us. To support the launch of the fund, we are starting a fundraising campaign to ensure we are able to help each and every person who comes to us for help.

We would urge industry employers to talk to us about your current employee assistance programmes and where the gaps are. RBF can help by signposting employees who come for help but may not be aware of the support available to them within their workplace.

We can also help enhance and add value to support which is currently available. For example, the team can deliver tailored workshops to help build the financial resilience of staff, and can offer assistance across a whole range of different interventions. I would also encourage businesses and organisations across the railway to consider RBF for a charity partnership, an employee fundraising opportunity, or just a charity to which to donate.

RBF has been helping anyone working in rail for more than 160 years. If you are a current or former rail employee who would benefit from our support, please contact the RBF Services team on support@railwaybenefitfund.org.uk or call 0345 241 2885. www.railwaybenefitfund.org.uk

0345 241 2885 info@railwaybenefitfund.org.uk

“I was so desperate and had nowhere else to turn. There was no judgement, just support and guidance to turn my situation around.”