Southeastern: Mental Health Advocacy Programme

Industry: Healthcare

Southeastern turned experience with PTSD into action, creating peer-led mental health and trauma support for colleagues.

How Southeastern supported the mental health of 1,800 colleagues through peer-to-peer programmes

Southeastern operate one of the busiest train networks in the UK. They operate services to destinations in Kent, London and East Sussex, including the domestic services on High Speed 1. Southeastern joined Business Disability Forum (BDF) in 2005. 

Southeastern identified a need for robust mental health support for staff, who are often confronted with traumatic events while working on the railway. They set up a peer-to-peer mental health programme to support colleagues going through a difficult time. Lee Woolcott-Ellis, On Board Manager and then Mental Health Lead for Southeastern, spearheaded the project after his therapy for complex PTSD inspired him to help others. Over 1,800 colleagues have engaged with the programme so far. 

The programme connects colleagues with mental health issues with volunteer advocates from within Southeastern, all of whom have received a level 2 accreditation from the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy. Colleagues can reach out about any issue affecting their lives, knowing they will be heard by qualified peers who can signpost further support from relevant organisations if needed.  

During the pilot, 68 colleagues came forward. In the second year, the number grew to 180. During the pandemic, user engagement increased by 333%.  

Now confident in the peer-to-peer format, Southeastern went even further by developing a Trauma Risk Management (TRiM) programme. This initiative utilises trained colleagues to conduct trauma risk assessments post 72 hours of an incident, with the aim of tackling trauma before it can become embedded. 

  • We’ve been very, very careful to make sure that we recruit the right volunteers for the right reasons” says Lee, “and we make sure we give them that extensive skill set, that professional training, to make sure not only we’re looking after our colleagues in the process but also looking after them as well. I think it’s’ really important to reinforce that.
     Lee Woolcott-Ellis,
    Southeastern

Crucially, the programmes are constantly re-evaluated for value so they can remain useful to the colleagues they serve. The Advocates and the TRiM team receive regular refreshers, where our Disability Business Partner gave a presentation last year. The team also rigorously collects anonymous data. Notable trends are shared with the HR, Communications and Wellbeing teams to ensure impactful support to colleagues across the organisation.  

  • The success of the mental health and TRiM programmes is clear. In the last 7 and a bit years we’ve had over 1,800 colleagues engage with mental health advocacy, and that’s something I think we can be really proud about. It works. We’ve managed to build a reputation of trust.
     Lee Woolcott-Ellis,
    Southeastern

In 2021 Lee wrote the Railway Mental Health Charter, which provides a framework to help promote, manage and support workforce mental wellbeing across the railway industry. To date, 130 UK rail companies have signed the Charter. Lee has also received several awards and was recognised in the King’s New Year Honours List in 2025.  

Access our Mental Health Toolkit (Members and Partners only, with a selection of resources open to the public) 

Mental Health Toolkit | Business Disability Forum

If you require this content in a different format, contact enquiries@businessdisabilityforum.org.uk.

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