Wellbeing

"The wellbeing of our employees remains a key priority for FirstGroup. Our employees have various wellbeing resources available to them through the Wellbeing Hub, accessed through our intranet. We have introduced webinars on neurodiversity and stress awareness, and marked Stress Awareness Month. We continue to offer training for colleagues who may wish to take up a future role as a Mental Health First Aider around the organisation."

Graham Sutherland, Chief Executive Officer, FirstGroup plc

Leadership and Governance

Strong leadership from the top is a key feature of our wellbeing culture. Our Responsible Business Committee, involving the Chief Executive Officer and members of the Group Executive Committee, together with First Bus and First Rail senior leadership teams, oversee the Group’s health, safety and wellbeing strategies and the performance, procedures and practices across all operating companies. These teams are fully committed to promoting an open and positive culture around mental and physical wellbeing.

The Responsible Business Committee meets at least three times a year and the Deputy Company Secretary acts as Committee Secretary. The Executive Committee oversees the Group’s strategy and the performance, it takes a proactive approach to improving performance and undertakes ‘deep dives’ on specific topics to inform interventions including mental and physical wellbeing. It is the responsibility of the Committee to promote a positive culture throughout the businesses and report back to the Board on trends, actions and other deliberations.

Day-to-day operational responsibilities are owned by the respective divisional HR directors and senior managers who then work with frontline and back office staff to implement the wellbeing strategy. 

Assurance and Management Systems

We maintain robust safety management systems throughout the Group, and a clear focus on ensuring compliance with policies, processes and procedures.

First Bus is accredited to ISO 45001 and ISO 14001 and merged the two standards across the division. Consolidating these standards demonstrates a comprehensive approach to ensuring safety, wellbeing and environmental controls are aligned and subject to independent scrutiny by specialists Alcumus ISOQAR. We have improved our safety and wellbeing management with contractors through a new permit system which helps to ensure that safety standards are upheld across all aspects of operations and by everyone working on our sites.

Within First Rail there is a comprehensive safety and wellbeing management system. Each company reviews and updates their procedures in light of new/updated legislation, changes within the business operation(s) such as new train introductions, audits, recommendations from incidents and horizon scanning. Some of the functions within the businesses already have ISOs such 9001, 18001 and 45001 to allow for continuous improvement. The aim is to work towards achieving more of these accreditations.

Across the Group we are exploring further opportunities to provide third party assurance for our mental health strategy and practices, but in the meantime work with various specialist organisations such as Able Futures and Better with Money. 

Our policies

All FirstGroup businesses are committed to a working environment where everyone is treated with dignity and respect, and where a culture of equal opportunity is fostered and nurtured. Our Group Dignity at Work and Group Equal Opportunities and Diversity policies explain our position clearly.

FirstGroup Dignity at Work Policy

FirstGroup Equal Opportunity and Diversity Policy  

Training and awareness raising

We are committed to proactively building a supportive culture and embedding wellbeing throughout our business. All our employees have access to the Wellbeing Hub, accessible via our intranet, which provides resources for helping with mental, emotional, physical, social and financial wellbeing. Resources include wellbeing guides, exclusive health related benefits, access to support and more.

Throughout the year we raise awareness of important mental and physical health topics via webinars, events and other communications.

We promote positive mental wellbeing by offering employees a variety of training and development opportunities. Many of these are linked to our diversity and inclusion initiatives to ensure that we are building a diverse talent pool that is representative of the communities we serve. Full details of these can be found on our Skills for the Future webpage and on our careers website.

Physical Wellbeing

Our Wellbeing Hub provides resources for physical wellbeing including signposting to sports and activity programmes, exercises and stretches, healthy recipes and diets, and balanced lifestyles and routines. Employees can also make use of exclusive fitness discounts and cycle to work schemes that aim to encourage physical wellbeing and active travel.

Physical wellbeing is also inextricably linked to safety, for more information please see our safety webpage.

Mental wellbeing

FirstGroup executive and management are committed to actively encouraging a culture of openness on mental health. The Wellbeing Hub provides signposting, information and support for mental health helplines, support networks and confidential support along with access to information, advice, webinars and other learning resources.

Our divisions have an Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) in place provided by a third party to help provide support to employees 24 hours a day, 365 days of the year. This programme includes access to 24/7 counselling and information resources.

Employees can access mental health apps and 24-hour phone support with information specialists who provide help and practical advice on work or personal subjects.

Further specialist support is available in partnership with Able Futures who provide confidential advice and guidance from a mental health specialist and access to therapy.

Mental Health First Aid and training

First Rail now has more than 400 Mental Health First Aiders in place, with coverage across all rail companies, and First Bus have a trained network of more than 250 Mental Health First Aiders. Within First Bus, all line managers have also been formally trained as Mental Health Champions this year. A new mental health awareness course has been launched on the First Bus University online learning platform.

Financial wellbeing

First Group are committed to fair pay and financial wellbeing, as outlined in our Code of Ethics and Supplier Code of Conduct. We have various initiatives to promote financial wellbeing and acknowledge its inextricable link to broader mental health and wellbeing. 

First Bus launched and delivered a comprehensive wellbeing guide to each colleague within the division helping them be more aware of how to support their own financial wellbeing. They have also been working with an organisation called Better with Money, offering all First Bus colleagues the opportunity to attend webinars that offer financial support.

In First Rail various initiatives have been introduced across our divisions such as the Avanti and Railway Benefit Fund, a partnership and commitment to support colleagues’ wellbeing. The aim of the partnership is to support as well as improve the general and financial wellbeing of current or former Avanti employees. The Crewe-based charity offer bespoke care and advice to railway families. In the past 12 months they have helped over 1,000 individuals struggling with hardship by delivering training sessions and running events for colleagues to increase the awareness of grants available to those who may be struggling financially.

Real Living Wage

To attract and retain the skills we need, and ensure employees mental and financial wellbeing, we offer a competitive wage reflecting local market demands and conditions. In First Rail, Avanti and Tram Operations Ltd. are accredited Living Wage Employers and pay the Real Living Wage (RLW) to employees and to third party contractors working directly for the Company in accordance with the Living Wage Foundation rates of pay. From 1 April 2024, First Bus also became a RLW employer, immediately impacting over 1,300 colleagues who have received a pay increase in line with this new commitment. Over the next 18 months there is also a commitment (outside of accreditation requirements) to include all First Bus apprentices. GWR also pay the RLW to directly employed colleagues.

First Xclusives

We believe reward is about more than just pay, so in addition to salaries we offer benefits to employees via an exclusive app First Xclusives. Money saving benefits include discounts, savings, cashback, vouchers and reload cards at major stores, retailers and travel partners. Long term financial benefits come via automatic enrolment in pension schemes and share plans for eligible employees.

Save-as-you-earn

Our SAYE employee share scheme offers all employees who have served for more than six months the opportunity share in the future success of our business. The scheme allows employees to save a set amount from their net pay each month, with the opportunity to buy FirstGroup shares at a discounted rate. 

Bonus plan

The Group has an annual bonus plan that is available for eligible colleagues to incentivise performance against a range of financial and non-financial metrics. The structure of the bonus is weighted so that 70% was based on financial metrics and 30% on non-financial metrics, which include some sustainability related metrics. The Audit Committee retains overriding discretion to adjust the overall bonus outturn (including to £nil) if a serious safety failing or deterioration is identified.

Long-term Incentive Awards

The Group also has a Long-term incentive plan (LTIP) award that is available for eligible colleagues. LTIP is currently measured against EPS (50%), relative TSR (30%) and a Sustainability Scorecard (20%), over a three-year period.

The Sustainability scorecard comprises the Scope 1& 2 emissions reduction (7.5%), zero emission buses in service or on order by 31 March 2026 (7.5%), gender diversity in senior leadership (2.5%) and ethnic diversity in senior leadership (2.5%).

Full details of our LTIP awards can be found in the annual report.

Flexible working

Flexible working has been found to help employees balance their work and home life, enhancing mental and physical wellbeing. We offer all employees the opportunity to request flexible working arrangements that are dependent on the individuals employees roles and responsibilities. Examples of these arrangements include job-sharing, flexitime, remote-working, and working compressed, annualised or staggered hours. Each request is managed by the respective HR departments and managers.

Reasonable adjustments

FirstGroup publish a Reasonable Adjustments Policy that applies to the entire employee life cycle, and also is referenced in our Recruitment policy. The policy outlines support for mental and physical health and includes explicit definitions of disabilities. The policy outlines our commitment and procedures to offer reasonable adjustments to support an individual’s mental and physical health at all points of an individual’s employment. These adjustments include during recruitment, on-boarding, day-to-day and career development stages of their employment, and will make reasonable adjustments when required.

Charity partnerships

We support hundreds of community causes and charitable organisations by mobilising our people to support key partnerships. Fundraising, volunteering and engagement opportunities can have a direct positive impact on our employees wellbeing, whilst also benefitting important causes. Two of our charity partners in particular, Macmillan and Samaritans, were selected due to their alignment to our business values including supporting wellbeing.

Macmillan provides specialist health case, information and financial support to people affected by cancer and we offer employees the opportunity to become an ‘Engagement Hero’.

Samaritans provide emotional support to anyone in emotional distress, struggling to cope or at risk of suicide. GWR along with the DfT, have commissioned the charity Samaritans to lead a new research study on mental health and wellbeing support for the rail industry, in partnership with Mental Health at Work. The study will aim to highlight existing barriers, as well as encourage a culture shift to destigmatise conversations around mental health.

Full information about our charitable programmes and opportunities are available on the Community Engagement section of our website.

Employee engagement

All our businesses carry out regular Your Voice surveys giving employees the opportunity to share their views on the way they are managed, things that are or are not working well which could include mental and physical wellbeing initiatives, and how likely they are to recommend FirstGroup as an employer. These surveys are anonymous and managed by an external specialist company to encourage candid feedback. Surveys from across our businesses conducted in 2024 have shown an improvement in response rates and in engagement levels, full details of which are outlined in our annual report. The results from these surveys are used to inform actions and projects across the business, updates of which can be found in our Annual Report. 

Safety

We understand the inextricable link between health and safety to individuals mental and physical wellbeing. As a result, we have introduced comprehensive health and safety programs throughout the Group to mitigate risk and promote best practice. Full details can be found on our Safety webpage and in our annual report.

Diversity and inclusion

We value diversity in capabilities, experiences, perspectives, and approaches and are committed to creating a diverse workforce and inclusive culture that is important for both our business and our people to thrive especially with their mental wellbeing. First Group understand that the actions we take on diversity and inclusion and fair working practices will help support workplace mental health, full details of our progress can be found on our Diversity and Inclusion webpage.

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