Ep 3. A workforce which reflects society, Loraine Martins MBE

Loraine Martins MBE, Director of Diversity and Inclusion at Network Rail, joins us in the studio for the third episode of our RTM podcast, talking at length about her role and how it came about – Loraine was the first person to hold her current position – as well as how accessibility and diversity can be attained across the rail sector, both for passengers and in the supply chain. 

Light-hearted humour and conversation filters in between Loraine and hosts Emily Rodgers and Matt Roberts at the Cognitive Publishing offices in Manchester, as vital hard-hitting discussions around improving industry inclusion are paired with the inevitable Arsenal v Newcastle discussion when putting a Londoner and a Geordie on a sofa together.

A recent name to be included in the Top 100 most influential women in engineering, the ever humble Loraine also discusses with our hosts the feelings of being named among such incredible women within the engineering sector and earning an MBE for her work with the Olympic Planning Committee in setting up the London 2012 Olympic Games, ensuring the projects utilised local workforce and upskilled the workers – who are now the same people working on HS2 and CrossRail.

Covering a range of elements and discussions in the timely half-hour sitting, this episode provides an all-access pass to Network Rail’s diversity and accessibility push, how the supply chain gets involved and the behind-the-scenes thought processes and desires involved from one of the most important people in planning out these future strategies. As Loraine says, Network Rail wish to “create opportunities to make sure our organisation is much more open, inclusive and diverse so we are an accessible railway for all passengers” – can you afford to miss out being a part of that development? 

The podcast might be industry-focused, with a core message supporting the supply chain in furthering their rail knowledge, but that doesn’t stop the laughs and light-hearted fun flowing throughout.

Our guests may be important figures at the head of key decision-making organisations in the industry, but we’re all just people too at the end of the day. As such, want to hear about Loraine’s favourite music, some of her personal past history and try your hand alongside us at the Olympics pub quiz, then tune in keenly!