It has been another huge year for the RailStaff Awards, with submissions for the ceremony’s 18 categories covering every role imaginable, and a record 144,000 votes to decide who was in the running for the night’s prizes.
Once the shortlists were revealed, Judges faced the unenviable task of whittling hundreds of hopefuls into dozens as the big event drew closer and the final preparations were made.
Everybody who was nominated is a star employee in our eyes, but here are the names of each of those who made it through as finalists.
Apprentice or Newcomer of the Year
Smital Dhake – Alstom
Kalen Ruddock – Alstom
Caroline Spence – Avanti West Coast
Melony Quigley – Trenitalia c2c Ltd
Jasmine Lazenby – CrossCountry
Miles Wootton – DigiSig Rail Group Ltd
Lucy Robinson – Faithful+Gould
Karolina Szpigiel – Greater Anglia
Riley Barnes – GTR
Sonnie Grainger – Southern
David Fox – Lumo
Daniel Craig Evans – Network Rail
Jamie Wyness – South Western Railway
Leon Jones – Train’d Up
Samuel Matthews – Transport for Wales
Award for Charity
Mark Fielding-Smith – AtkinsRéalis
Mark Goodall – CrossCountry
Denise Vincent – Greater Anglia
Michael King – Greater Anglia
Kayleigh Smith and Stevie James – GTR
Iain Perry – GTR
Michael Manders – Hull Trains
Craig Murphy – Merseyrail
Mobile Operations Team Network Rail – Network Rail N&E
Stewart Hall and Darin Astbury – Northern
Susan Temple – ScotRail
The Alex Wardle SWR Team – South Western Railway
Charles Dickson – Southern
Alex Garnett – Scherer – Transport for London
Simone Carter – West Midlands Railway
Customer Service Award
Siraz Islam – Trenitalia c2c Ltd
Nicola Harlow – CrossCountry
Angela Milton – Greater Anglia
Gentian Kala – Land Sheriffs
Alison Mearns – Merseyrail
Wahsim Safiedeen – MTR Elizabeth Line
Dave Standidge – Network Rail
John Cliff – Northern
Susan Temple – ScotRail
Josie Looi – ScotRail
Kayleigh Holt – South Western Railway
Aggie Shiham – South Western Railway
Sheree Whetren – South Western Railway
Charles Dickson – Southern
Jonathan Louis – Southern
Depot & Freight Staff Award
Engineering and Operations team c2c – Trenitalia c2c Ltd
Cambridge Drivers Team – CrossCountry
David Jenkinson – DB Cargo
Daniel Fredriksson – GBRTT
Antony Roe and Robert Cann – Freightliner
Ralph Wilson – Freightliner
All Depots Supporting the Mendip Contract Mendip Eastleigh Reading Bristol Acton Thamesport – Freightliner
Peter Stojanovic – Freightliner
Gary Douglas – Freightliner
Jake Blood – Freightliner
Josh Webster – Freightliner
Dave Eccles – Freightliner
GB RailFreight Felixstowe Operations Team – GB Railfreight
Merseyrail Liverpool Half Marathon Team – Merseyrail
Engineering Team SWR – South Western Railway
Digital Railway Person or Team Award
AtkinsRéalis Station Accessibility Audit Team – AtkinsRéalis
Freightliner ERTMS Project Team – Freightliner
Network Rail and KONUX Network Delivery Team – KONUX UK Ltd
Gary Craig – Network Rail Scotland
Adam Stanley – Network Rail
Rebecca Meechan – Network Rail Scotland
GSM-R Engineering Team – Network Rail
Marc Silverwood – Northern
Barnaby Kent – One Big Circle
Scotland’s Railway Communication Teams – Network Rail Scotland / ScotRail
Rafael Carneiro – Southern
Metro South Southern Operations Team – Southern
Request to Stop Team – Telent
Dean Bolton – Transport for Wales
Yuji Isayama – West Midlands Trains
Health & Wellbeing Award
Daniel Ball – CrossCountry
Martin Riddle – CrossCountry
Karen Parker – GB Railfreight
Stuart Young Iain Perry Rik Mostert – GTR
Rosie Jhingan – Merseyrail
Dominic Mottram – Network Rail
Jeremy Brock – Network Rail
Railway Mission Chaplain Team – Railway Mission
Shirley Courtney – ScotRail
Sheree Whetren – South Western Railway
Brian Reece – South Western Railway
Deborah Thomas – Southeastern
Vincent Hoilett – Southern
Angus Draper – Transport for London
Sharon Hershman – Southeastern
HR, Diversity, & Inclusion Person or Team
Stephen Williams – Alstom Transport Ltd
Daniel Omatsola-Morgan – Atkins / CRSA
Paul McGunnigle-White – Trenitalia c2c Ltd
Ian Watts – GTR
Heathrow Express – Heathrow Express
Hull Trains HR Team Trains – Hull Trains
Lilly Connors – Network Rail
Kirsty Diamond – Network Rail Scotland
Lorraine Mhonyera – Network Rail
Rebecca Lomax – Network Rail
Stefani Dupree – NGE
Rachel Fullard – Rail Delivery Group
Leeanne Dunko – ScotRail
Sharon Hershman – Southeastern
Ajay Gill – West Midlands Railway
Learning, Development & Investing in People Award
Abdul Rehman Savant – ASAVRAIL
Alina-Florentina Lighean – AtkinsRéalis
Carl Bavister – Avanti West Coast
Alistair Dunn – CrossCountry
James Beckingham – GTR
Alan Gearing – GTR
Mark Kirton – GTR
Apprenticeship Team Apprenticeship Team – Southern
Chris Crawley and the City & Guilds Impact Team – City & Guilds Training (Intertrain)
Mike Mitchell – Network Rail
Mark Law – Network Rail
Robert Porter – South Western Railway
Metro South Southern Operations Team – Southern
Stewart Ekstrom-Gabb – Transport for Wales
Srikanth Reddy Mandalapu – Wabtec Control Systems
Lifetime Achievement
Alan Newman – Chiltern Railways
Stewart Cumming – CrossCountry
Mick Owen – Freightliner
Ashley Hughes – Freightliner
Julie Garn – GB Railfreight
Alan Neville – Greater Anglia
Bradley Read – Greater Anglia
Steve Woodcock – Greater Anglia
Ian Brown – GTR
Frannie Thurlbeck – Keltbray Ltd
Ian Simms – Network Rail Scotland
Richard Godwin – Network Rail
Heather Cullimore – Severnside Community Rail Partnership
Simon Langley – South Western Railway
Jerry Sims – XEIAD, part of the BES Group
Rail Engineer of the Year
Toby Owen – AECOM
Lance Kirby – Alstom
Kalen Ruddock – Alstom
Janine Bootland – Amey Consulting
Nick Wightman – Amey Consulting
Naresh Kumar Kalra – AtkinsRéalis
Brian Moore – Avanti West Coast
David Millar – Balfour Beatty Vinci
Richard Yates – Freightliner
Velmurugan Kandasamy – Thales Ground Transportation Systems
Aaron Darby – Heathrow Airport
Gary Thompson – KONUX GMBH
James Donnelly – Lumo
Heimo Nieminen – Network Rail
Claudia Philps – Network Rail
Rail Manager of the Year
James Dobson – Avanti West Coast
Rhiannon Price – BTTC
Guy Reed – CrossCountry
Stuart Field – CrossCountry
Rachel Blackman – CrossCountry
Simona Daraba – Greater Anglia
Simon Bott – Southern
Angela Toase – Southern
Alex Reed – Heathrow Airport
Jane Murray – Northern
Satty Potiwal – South Western Railway
Bernadette Miamo – South Western Railway
Anneliese Reid – Southeastern
Marianna Busuttil – Southern
Monica Dutta – Southern
Rail Person of the Year
Mohammed Qureshi – Amulet / Trenitalia c2c Ltd
Issac Enyan – Amulet / Trenitalia c2c Ltd
Philip Olweny – Amulet / Trenitalia c2c Ltd
Peter Jackson – Arriva Rail London (Overground)
Oliver Harrison – Avanti West Coast
Joana Amoh – Carlisle Support Services
Elliott Waters – GBRTT
Adam Archer – Great Western Railway
Jade Southwell – GTR
Trevor Leonard – Southern
Chris McGowan – Merseyrail
Craig Murphy – Merseyrail
Ashley Ryan – Network Rail
Susan Temple – Scotrail
Charles Dickson – Southern
Rail Team of the Year
Serrano Safeguarding Team working on Operation Beach – Amulet
Blackpool Travel Safe Officers – Amulet
BBV Sublot 8.2 – Balfour Beatty Vinci
Banbury Dispatch Team – Chiltern Railways
GWR Apprentice Team – Great Western Railway
West Rosters and Support team – Greater Anglia
Planning & Performance Team – Lumo Trains
Merseyrail Liverpool Half Marathon Team – Merseyrail
DC Lines Resleepering Alliance – Network Rail
Blackpool Gateline Operators – Northern
Johnstone Station – ScotRail
London City Focus Group – Southeastern
Southern Operational Response Team – Southern
Wolverhampton Customer Experience Team – West Midlands Railway
Western Route Structures Examinations Team – XEIAD, part of the BES Group
Recruitment & Talent Acquisition Person or Team
Michael ‘Mick’ Schruyers – Advance TRS
Josh Hill – Advance TRS
ARM Rail Team – Advanced Resource Managers
Rachel McDermott – Coyle Personnel
Coyle Rail Blue Collar North Team – Coyle Personnel
Phil Gittins – Coyle Personnel
Jaimie Butel-Foley – Coyle Personnel
Andy Page – CrossCountry
Blue-Collar Safety Critical Team – Deploy Recruitment Group
Victor Gowrava – KONUX GmbH
McGinley Support Services Apprenticeship Team – McGinley Support Services
Helen Dawson – Network Rail
Erin Gray – Network Rail
Central Resourcing Team – Siemens Mobility Ltd
Transport for Wales Rail Limited Recruitment Team – Transport for Wales
Safety Person or Team Award
Lewis Johnson – Alstom Transport UK & I
Rob Wands – Deploy Limited
Matthew Noblett – Freightliner
Gary Lobue – Ganymede Solutions
Eddie Carpenter – Merseyrail
Gary Chambers – Network Rail
Chris Hemmings – Network Rail
Nick Smith – Pentalver
Paul Allison – Quattro Plant
Samaritans Rail Team – Samaritans
Station Operations Team – South Western Railway
Kimone Lyle English – Southeastern
Bridget Nolan and Jeremy Rogers – Southern / GTR
Kris Yorke – Stadler Rail Service UK
Martyn Howells – Transport for Wales
Samaritans Lifesaver
George Mitchell and Harry Jordan – Amulet – Northern
Michaela Joseph – Amulet / Trenitalia c2c Ltd
Mohammed Hussain – Amulet / Trenitalia c2c Ltd
Grace-Anne Stephenson – Arriva Rail London
Carl Engdahl – Avanti West Coast
Bryan Lunt – CrossCountry
Carl Mieleszko – CrossCountry
Amir Aziz – GTR
Fazakerley Station Team Station Retailers Fazakerley – Merseyrail
Nicole Cassidy – ScotRail
Megan Moore – ScotRail
Greig Gibson – ScotRail
Carl Jarvis – Southeastern
Garry Letts – Southern
Samantha Rooke – Transport for Wales
Station Staff Award
Jack Iddon – Avanti West Coast
Mark Hornigold – Greater Anglia
Samet Aptula – Greater Anglia
Angela Milton – Greater Anglia
Katerina Makolova – Southern
St Pancras International Station Team – Network Rail High Speed
Blackpool Gateline Operators – Northern
Doreen Southworth – Northern
Janice Povah – ScotRail
Susan Temple – ScotRail
Blake RObins – South Western Railway
Kimoya Jemison – Southeastern
Kieran Hardy – West Midlands Railway
Julian Smith – West Midlands Railway
Shafizul Hussain – Network Rail
Sustainability & Net Zero Person or Team
Toby Owen – AECOM
Lewis McKay – Amulet Security
Abdul Rehman Savant – ASAVRAIL
Cleshar Contract Services Ltd and Network Rail – Cleshar Contract Services Ltd / Network Rail
Jason Brooker – GTR
Lumo Trains – Lumo
Scotland Environment and Sustainability Team – Network Rail Scotland
Rebecca Meechan – Network Rail Scotland
Shrewsbury Delivery Unit Wales and Borders – Network Rail
Rebecca Styles – Northern
Bob Browning – Quattro Plant
Green Travel Pledge – Rail Delivery Group
Network Rail & Sicut Enterprises – Sicut Enterprises
Sustainability Team – South Western Railway
Sustainability Team – Southeastern
