GB Railfreight raises £160,000 for good causes in 2017

GB Railfreight raises £160,000 for good causes in 2017

Staff at GB Railfreight (GBRf) spent 2017 raising money for three charities and on Saturday (27th January 2018) it was time to hand over the fruits of their efforts, with the worthy causes splitting £160,000 between them. Over the year, members from all levels of GBRf’s team embarked on a charity train tour, bike rides, half marathons, netball tournaments, football games, dress down days, cake sales, calendar sales and raised money from staff collections on away days.

Speaking on the efforts of his team, John Smith, GBRf’s managing director and parent company Hector Rail’s chief executive, said:

“I could not be prouder of my team for all their efforts during 2017 to raise money for these most worthy of causes. We hope that these sums will go some way towards helping them continue to fund their activities in 2018. They all do such amazing work, both in terms of national challenges, and for local communities that it has been our privilege to be able to associate ourselves with them.”

Speaking on behalf of the British Heart Foundation, the UK’s leading charity fighting to end heart disease which received £100,000 from GBRf’s fundraising efforts Sarah Miller said:

“We have been really impressed with all of the fundraising activities GBRf has gotten involved in…. We aim to invest £100 million into research every year to improve prevention, diagnosis and treatment of cardiovascular disease, and it’s thanks to companies like GBRf that we are able to do this…thank you for the time, the energy and the commitment you have all put into helping us continue our life saving work.”

The Ripple Project, which received £30,000, is based in Edinburgh and is a community-based venture that provides a variety of services to people of all ages, including youth mentoring, a local newspaper, and lunch clubs for elderly residents. In addition, its volunteers run the Hub Grub Café, which enables local people to come together and socialise over a cup of coffee and a cake. Speaking on the donation from GBRf, Fiona Cross of The Ripple Project said:

“You are a gift to the community, and your money had real impact in our charity…and our projects”

Also receiving £30,000 was Woking Homes, which aims to provide a secure, relaxed and homely environment in which the care, wellbeing and comfort of residents are of prime importance. They provide residential care for people who have worked in the railway industry and their spouses, from train drivers and ticket collectors to engineers, guards, and booking office staff.

Sarah Kemp, chief executive of Woking Homes said:

“We are very grateful for the generosity of GBRf staff, which has enabled us to replace our ageing minibus: the new one has the GBRf logo proudly displayed. It is also very important to us to ensure that the rail community as a whole is aware of the services we provide.”

GBRf will be continuing its fundraising efforts over the course of 2018 for Macmillan Cancer Support and Headway, a charity supporting those with brain injuries.

John Smith commented:

“Macmillan Cancer and Headway are both deeply personal charities for us, with various staff members having experience of the challenges they are seeking to address. I know everyone at GBRf is looking forward to doing their bit to ensure we raise as much, if not more, for our charity partners this year.”

ENDS

For further information, please contact:
Westbourne Communications
020 3397 0100
GBRF@westbournecoms.com

Notes to editors

This press release was amended from the version that was sent out to correct an earlier error in the description of Woking Homes. GBRf is happy to make this clarification.

About GB Railfreight
Founded in 1999 and headquartered in London, United Kingdom, GB Railfreight is the third largest rail freight operator in the United Kingdom, with a turnover in excess of GBP 120m. GB Railfreight is one of the fastest growing companies in the railway sector and transports goods for a wide range of customers.For more information about GBRf’s 2017 charity partners, visit www.bhf.org.uk, http://rippleproject.co.uk/ripple-services/get-involved/, and http://www.woking-homes.co.uk/.
For more about GBRf’s 2018 charity partners, visit www.macmillan.org.uk and www.headway.org.uk.

GB Railfreight MD to lead parent group

GB Railfreight MD to lead parent group

John Smith, Managing Director of GB Railfreight (GBRf) has been appointed the new CEO of parent company Hector Rail Group and will assume his new role and responsibilities from Monday 8th January 2018.

Commenting on this appointment, Bo Lerenius, Hector Rail’s chairman said:

“With a solid background of developing and growing companies, John Smith has full insight of the challenges and opportunities that Hector Rail Group currently faces. The board is confident that John’s clear customer perspective and strong leadership will drive Hector Rail Group to become the leading independent pan-European rail freight operator.”

John Smith added:

“This is a fantastic opportunity to build on what we started with GBRf, and to bring the knowledge that I have gained to our parent company. I plan to take that knowledge to Hector Rail, to continue to demonstrate the importance of rail freight in sustainable economic growth. I feel there are significant opportunities at closer co-operation between the operators across Europe, and I hope to be the voice for that effort.”

Duncan Clark, GBRf’s strategic development director, said:

“We are all obviously delighted for John that he is being given this opportunity, and believe this is a great chance for the good practice that GBRf has developed over the years to be implemented with Hector Rail. We are sure that he will make excellent use of this chance to cement his position as the pre-eminent spokesman for the rail freight sector in the UK, and become its leader across Europe.”

John Smith founded GB Railfreight in 1999 and is the company’s Managing Director. He has over 40 years of experience from the rail industry, including various leading positions at British Rail and Anglia Railways.

Founded in 2004, Hector Rail is a Swedish-based independent train haulage provider for the European rail transport market. They produce approximately 7.2m train km/year in operations in Sweden, Norway, Denmark, and Germany.

They provide modern rail solutions with the highest quality and performance, creating value for customers through innovative and efficient solutions. Clients include industrial shippers, forwarders, intermodal operators, and traditional railway companies.

ENDS

For further information, please contact:
Westbourne Communications
020 3397 0100
GBRF@westbournecoms.com

About GB Railfreight
Founded in 1999 and headquartered in London, United Kingdom, GB Railfreight is the third largest rail freight operator in the United Kingdom, with a turnover in excess of GBP 120m. GB Railfreight is one of the fastest growing companies in the railway sector and transports goods for a wide range of customers.

For further information about GB Railfreight, please visit www.gbrailfreight.com
For further information about Hector Rail Group, please visit www.hectorrail.com