Ten minutes with...
RSSB’s top trainer, Suzanne Anderson.
RT: How long have you been on the railway?
Six-and-a-half years, which is a relatively short time in railway terms. Like many people who joined the industry, I do wish I had known it was a career option years before. The saying that the railway is the best kept secret is very true.
From a female perspective, it is a fantastic arena in terms of career progression. Many women don’t tend to showcase their abilities or have the confidence to put themselves forward for roles, but on the railway you’re actively encouraged.
RT: As a guard, what were the challenges you faced back then?
That is a tough question, because there were many. Sometimes stepping up to challenging instructions from those you might deem having more authority – I found that quite difficult. Another was the challenge of not making errors and mistakes from pressing a wrong button, to typical operational errors, like a ‘starting against signal’ (SAS) SPAD for example.
RT: How are you using this experience in your role as a trainer at RSSB?
I’ve mentioned these challenges, as I frequently think about them as a trainer. With regard to feeling able to make effective decisions and challenge those decisions that go against what you have been taught, I’ve been delivering a decision-making course, which works as a protective strategy when being faced with out-of-course situations.
Interestingly, a lot of other industries, like the police, have a framework for decision making that works from the front line upwards, and I often think generally industry-wide, effective decision-making training is often overlooked. Our reality is taking a couple of minutes to assess the situation, which probably isn’t prescriptive enough.
With regard to making errors, while we’re quite good at acknowledging that people do make errors, I don’t think we're always good at identifying underlying causes effectively enough, and so the errors will keep happening. We’re probably more likely to focus on an individual, when the likelihood is many people might make that same error.
Martin Bromley, founder of the Clinical Human Factors Group, says we need to make it easy for people to not make errors. I think we forget that and I’m mindful during our accident investigation course of how difficult it is to cast an objective eye over the systems that people work within. I’m reminded of how important it is to have a good understanding of human factors.
RT: Having seen two sides of the industry, what is your main safety concern at the moment
There are two for me. Following the aftermath of Covid, the cost-of-living crisis and the rise in abuse, I do feel concerned about the mental health and wellbeing of frontline staff. It’s been a tough few years and they have carried on. There is a lot of work going on to help, but I think a lot of people are feeling a bit fed up and I hope they feel able to speak out.
The second is really to do with investigation and whether investigating staff are able to identify underlying causes of incidents effectively enough.
RT: What are your top tips for guards?
We don’t always talk about apathy, but I do think it is a risk to some staff, particularly where someone has done a role for long time. If you’re feeling fed up, try and talk to someone.
With new guards, it will probably take you a year before you feel fully comfortable in the role – but that is okay.
Finally, never be afraid to challenge instructions that conflict with what you have been trained, even if you perceive someone to be of higher authority. They don’t always get things right.
Suzanne Anderson delivering our accident investigation training course to Network Rail
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