Rail Minister Andrew Jones hailed the accreditation for train stations, the Secure Stations Scheme, on a visit to East Croydon station in south London, recently accredited by British Transport Police (BTP). There Jones met BTP officers, rail operator Southern staff, and the charities Samaritans; and the Railway Children, which takes referrals from BTP of children at risk.
Some 673 stations across Britain are now so accredited, including 172 stations newly-accredited or re-accredited since the re-launch of the scheme in 2017. It was originally launched in 1998.
Andrew Jones said: “The Secure Stations Scheme forms part of the exceptional work British Transport Police, station staff and charities do every single day to give passengers the safe journeys they deserve. More than 170 stations are now newly or re-accredited under the refreshed scheme, demonstrating an outstanding commitment to tackling crime and safeguarding passengers. It is particularly poignant and important today to commend the incredible work being done on suicide prevention, ensuring we protect vulnerable people on our railways.”
And Samaritans Chief Executive Officer Ruth Sutherland said: “Samaritans has been working with the railway industry since 2010 to prevent suicide and provide advice, training and access to our service. Samaritans has now trained more than 17,000 railway staff to spot vulnerable people on the network and intervene to help them. We see partnerships as playing a vital part in achieving our vision of reducing suicide. They allow us to reach vulnerable groups that may not otherwise contact Samaritans.
“We join up with organisations from a variety of sectors, including health, education/young people, transport, construction and the services. We look forward to continuing to do this and save more lives.”
Background
For a station to gain accreditation, it’s assessed on visibility, lighting, CCTV, safeguarding of vulnerable people and crime data.
A ‘Small Talk Saves Lives‘ partnership by Samaritans with BTP and Network Rail seeks to publicise how small talk we use every day can be enough to interrupt someone’s suicidal thoughts and encourage them to get help.
