Rail pastors seek to help any people in need; like street pastors in town centres at night. Rail pastors are back patrolling the Greater Anglia rail network; from Shenfield to Southend Victoria, Shenfield to Colchester Town and Harlow Town to Cambridge, after stopping due to the covid pandemic.
Rail pastors patrol over the day and into the evening, visiting stations and boarding trains. You can recognise them by their light blue baseball caps and zipped jackets, and they wear photo-ID.
Matthew Wakefield, Greater Anglia’s Head of Safety, Security and Sustainability, said: “We are very pleased to welcome rail pastors back to the Greater Anglia network. We fully support any initiative which aims to keep people safe on our rail network, and we are extremely grateful to the rail pastors for volunteering their time to care for others.
“As well as looking out for suicidal or vulnerable people, pastors provide assistance to anyone – this includes helping anyone who may be confused or anxious, ensuring they get to where they need to go, or just offering reassurance and a friendly face.”
Pastors first started patrolling on Greater Anglia between Shenfield and Colchester on the Great Eastern Main Line in January 2018, before starting on the West Anglia route in June 2018.
One of the Rail Pastors, Phil Norton, said: “We are a non-judgmental group of people who are here to support those who are vulnerable or simply need someone to talk to. We have enjoyed patrolling the railway in Essex and we are very pleased to be back again to help those in need.”
How to become a rail pastor
The volunteers first undertake the street pastor training. Training to become a street pastor takes a minimum of three months. Rail pastors is an initiative of Ascension Trust, supported by British Transport Police (BTP), train operators, Network Rail and Samaritans, and aims to save lives and reduce disruption on the rail network. All rail pastors are fully trained Street Pastors who have also completed the Samaritans’ Managing Suicidal Contacts course, which has been undertaken by more than 25,000 rail workers including security officers.
Samaritans’ concern
The Samaritans meanwhile are concerned that if NHS Long Term Plan funding ends in March 2024 as is planned, local suicide prevention activity will likely need to be scaled back or stopped, putting an end to some services for people in communities across England with the highest risk of dying by suicide.
Photo by Mark Rowe; Thorpe Bay station, Southend.
