Leeds Beckett University - City Campus,
Woodhouse Lane,
LS1 3HE
Leeds Beckett University working to improve rail workers’ safety
VolkerRail is working with Dr Jim Morgan, from the School of Social Sciences, to enhance rail worker safety and reduce accident risk by looking at behavioural interventions.
Amey is also working with Leeds Beckett with the aim of reducing safety incidents across the company’s rail business and its supply chain, leading to a reduction in costs and better profits.
Both companies are being supported by Leeds Beckett through Knowledge Transfer Partnerships (KTP). KTP is a government-funded programme to help businesses develop and gain a competitive advantage with the help of UK universities. Each KTP creates a unique partnership between a business, the university and a highly skilled graduate to deliver a strategic innovation project.
Speaking about the partnership with Leeds Beckett, Stuart Webster-Spriggs, HSQE Director for VolkerRail, said: “The KTP project has accelerated the improvements we are continually seeking to our safety culture and is groundbreaking in terms of bespoke knowledge in the area of risk perception. As a result, we are achieving a much wider knowledge of our workforce through open engagement, and are able to react to what really drives them to make further improvements.”
Talking about his company’s work with Leeds Beckett, Robert Doyle, Amey’s Consulting and Rail HSEQ Director, said: “As Amey’s number one priority is safety, we are always looking for new ways to improve our safety performance. The KTP project with Leeds Beckett University gives us an opportunity to challenge our current approach towards behavioural safety.
“By embedding our KTP Associate within the business we are able to leverage this knowledge in a seamless approach within our operational environments. I am confident that with the continued support of the KTP Associate and the delivery of the ongoing project, that we will see even more improvement on our journey towards zero harm.”
To find out more about Knowledge Transfer Partnerships and how your organisation could work with Leeds Beckett University, please contact the Leeds Beckett KTP office – ktp@leedsbeckett.ac.uk or call 0113 812 5981.