Stagecoach East highly commended after winning prestigious national collaboration award for preventing violence against women and girls
Cambridgeshire’s biggest bus operator has been recognised for its work in preventing violence against women and girls.
Stagecoach East won the CIHT (Chartered Institution of Highways and Transportation) Awards for the Collaboration Award, and it was also highly commended for the Bus Centre of Excellence Innovation of the Year Award.
The winners were announced at the world-famous Royal Lancaster Hotel at Hyde Park in London.
The CIHT Awards are one of the most important award schemes in the transport industry. These awards have been running for more than 15 years and are independently judged by senior figures within the industry.
The applications were based on Buses and Businesses Against Abuse (BAA), a unique partnership between Stagecoach East, the Cambridgeshire Constabulary, and the Cambridge and Peterborough Rape Crisis Centre, to tackle violence against women and girls throughout Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire, and wherever Stagecoach East buses run.
East’s buses, including those throughout Fenland, are officially places of refuge for people fearing that they will be subject to abuse or assault, with signs on each bus to show this. All drivers are receiving training on how to recognise and help victims.
Darren Roe, managing director of Stagecoach East, said: “We are absolutely delighted to have won such a prestigious national award, and to be highly commended in a second category is just the icing on the cake.
“Alongside our outstanding partners, Cambridgeshire Constabulary and the Cambridge and Peterborough Rape Crisis Centre, our team have worked extremely hard to make a real difference to the lives of women and girls locally.
“BAA is very important to us – all our new drivers are trained in the scheme, and all our existing drivers are receiving annual training.
“We now have many examples of where that training has been put into practice, and we are proud to be able to say that our buses are safe spaces for everyone.”
