Rail Minister applauds Railway Mission’s £1.8million value to society

Research has revealed that the Railway Mission provides pastoral care within the railway community, generating £1.8 million in social value last year. The Rail Safety and Standard Board's (RSSB) Rail Social Value Tool (RSVT) indicates that each pound of the Railway Missions expenditure produces £3.13 in social benefits, focusing on stress management, peer support, coping skills, and resilience. These results were set to be showcased in the Parliamentary Office of Chris Loder MP.

The updated RSVT, which Railway Mission helped to test, now includes around 1,000 metrics, with many new additions related to environmental impacts, and features a more user-friendly interface. Liam Johnston, the Executive Director of Railway Mission, noted that the charity's significant personal impact on individuals extends through their professional networks, amplifying the social value across the industry.

The development of the RSVT by RSSB’s sustainable development team is part of the broader Sustainable Rail Blueprint. It aims to enhance industry standards for measuring and discussing social value impacts. Tom Hall, RSSB’s Social Sustainability Principal, highlighted that the RSVT helps quantify the substantial, yet often anecdotal, personal impacts of support services like those provided by Railway Mission.

Currently, about 25 rail organisations use the RSVT for various purposes, from project forecasting and monitoring to annual reporting. While most organizations utilize 30 to 40 of the available metrics tailored to specific focuses, the tool’s flexibility supports a broad spectrum of social value assessments within the rail industry.

Rail MinisterHuwMerriman MP said: “The Railway Mission plays an important role in providing support to railway staff across the country through the most difficult of times and I’m a huge supporter of their work. I was pleased to join the team again to hear inspirational stories and welcome the RSSB’s report which highlights the valuable contribution this brilliant charity delivers.”

Chris Loder MP said: "I was delighted to host this event where the RSSB revealed the impressive social value contribution made by the Railway Mission to Britain’s railway. During my many years in the rail industry, prior to becoming the MP for West Dorset, I saw first-hand the real difference the Railway Mission makes to the wellbeing of both employees and their families across the network.” 

Liam Johnston, Executive Director at the Railway Mission said: “As the executive director of the Railway Mission, I am profoundly grateful for the recognition of our work's significant impact. This evaluation reaffirms our commitment to serve the railway community with compassion and dedication, delivering tangible benefits that extend beyond the rails. We are inspired to continue our journey, enriching lives and nurturing resilience across the sector."

Johnny Schute, Chief Operating Officer at RSSB said: “The Railway Mission team makes critical interventions across our network every day, protecting the wellbeing of the whole railway family in difficult moments. In many ways their social value is self-evident, but we’ve been able to calculate tangible figures to get a true sense of exactly what this value is. It’s been a great opportunity to road-test the latest version of the Rail Social Value Tool, which can be used to monitor and measure the social value of projects and day-to-day operations, and guide investment decisions.”