Northern lends support to Samaritans’ Christmas campaign

The rail operator has handed over advertising space across its stations and on its ticket machines, giving Samaritans the opportunity to reach more rail users with its Christmas campaign.

The campaign reminds all people that, no matter what they are facing this holiday season, Samaritans are on-hand to listen.

Dave Brown, Regional Development Lead for the rail programme at Samaritans, said: “Christmas can be a really tough time of year for people and we want to  encourage those using the rail network to keep an eye out for anyone they think might need help  and to not be afraid to ask if they’re ok.

“We want people to know that they’re not alone, whatever they’re facing, our Samaritans volunteers are still here over the festive season to provide emotional support.”

Dave added: “We’re really pleased that Northern have got on-board and will help our message reach many more people this Christmas. The extra visibility of the campaign will make such a difference so that people know they can reach out to us for help.”

Mark Powles, Customer and Commercial Director at Northern, said: “We’re pleased to be able to build on our excellent relationship with Samaritans and provide support with access to our advertising space.

“One of our key goals is to make a positive impact in the north of England and we hope that by helping Samaritans reach more people, we can, in turn, make a positive impact for those who are feeling particularly vulnerable at this time of year.”

The Samaritans campaign will feature on digital advertising screens across the Northern network throughout December and also features as the subject of the latest episode of Northern’s podcast, Proud to be Northern. In the episode, Dave Brown talks to Northern about the support Samaritans offers and why, this year, such support is more important than ever before.

Samaritans has worked in partnership with the rail industry and the British Transport Police to reduce suicides on the railway for more than 10 years. This includes training rail staff to look out for people who might need help and start a conversation, offering their support and getting them to safety. To date, more than 20,000 rail staff and BTP officers have been trained in suicide prevention.

Whatever you’re facing, Samaritans volunteers are here to listen, day or night, 365 days a year. Call free on 116 123 or email jo@samaritans.org