Oxford Bus Group has celebrated the dedication and achievements of its workforce in an awards evening that recognised the role of frontline and operational staff across its network of coach and bus companies.
The operator’s ‘Really Amazing Awards’ were held on 22 April at the University of Oxford’s Museum of Natural History, and brought together employees from Oxford Bus Company, Thames Travel, Carousel Buses, City Sightseeing Oxford and Pulhams Coaches to spotlight standout contributions from across the group.
Among the notable moments of the evening was the recognition of six long-serving colleagues whose combined tenure totalled 175 years. They were:
- Oxford Bus Company drivers Edgar Tiburcio and Paul Tomlin, honoured for 35 years’ service each
- Sunil Vamadevan for 30 years’ service
- Oxford Bus Company driver Andrew Barlow and Thames Travel driver George Walker, and City Sightseeing Oxford tour guide Debbie Lowe, were each rewarded for 25 years’ service.
George’s award also marked a milestone for Thames Travel, being the first ever 25 year milestone celebrated at the company, which was founded in 1998.
Other staff were recognised in a range of peer-nominated award categories designed to highlight exceptional service, innovation and teamwork. Winners were selected from a shortlist of four nominees in each category, with the exception of the long service honours. They were:
- Above and Beyond Award: To Stores Manager Lies Droueche, for work training colleagues, embedding new systems and working to ensure the business had spare parts needed to keep the growing fleet of coaches and buses on the road
- Unsung Hero Award: To Jeff Gambie, Service Delivery Controller at Carousel Buses, for his work in helping the business expand following the closure of Arriva’s High Wycombe and Aylesbury depots
- The A-Team Award: Jointly won by Oxford Bus Company’s bus driver training team of Alan Hathaway, Alex Knox, Sam Garrard, Mark Bumann, Guy Powell, Simon Lal, Sarah Powell and Adam Richards; and its HR team of Catherine Mulholland, Simon Field, Zoe Smith, Hayley Mallet. The bus driver training team trained a record number of drivers this year, while the HR team “welcomed a significant number of new colleagues, and [ensured] the transition from Arriva to Carousel and Oxford Bus Company went smoothly for those affected by the other operator’s depot closures.”
- Customer Hero Award: To Rachel Murr, Thames Travel Driver and Relief Controller, recognised for “hard work and flexibility supporting the depot team” and for “great communication with the customer services team.”
- Engineer of the Year Award: To Tom Sheppard, for excellent performance at Oxford Bus Company and commitment to being the best engineer he can be
- Rising Star Award: To Matt Molyneux, Assistant Account at Pulhams, for outstanding commitment and desire to develop his skills
- Manager of the Year: To Oxford Bus Company Assistant Operations Manager Marta Wodzinska.
The evening concluded with the Star of the Year awards, which included bronze, silver and gold categories.
- Gold: Airline coach driver Oseas Nunes
- Silver: Oxford Bus Company driver Alice Elliott
- Bronze: Airline coach driver Jake Saw.
Luke Marion, Oxford Bus Company Managing Director comments: “It was fantastic to celebrate our colleagues who have delivered really amazing work on a consistent basis.
“It is our brilliant people that ensure we deliver a first-class service to our customers daily and they deserve to be celebrated. We also recognised our colleagues who have given a significant number of years’ service.
“There are so many unsung heroes within our group of businesses who do an excellent job, providing first class public service, and they should all be very proud.
“It was another significant year for the Oxford Bus Group in which we have invested in delivering continued improvements to our network and fleets to ensure bus and coach travel is as attractive and accessible as possible.”
