Roles of organisations in the UK's railways
Published 1 May 2018
© Crown copyright 2018
This publication is licensed under the terms of the Open Government Licence v3.0 except where otherwise stated. To view this licence, visit nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3 or write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gov.uk.
Where we have identified any third party copyright information you will need to obtain permission from the copyright holders concerned.
This publication is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/managing-the-uks-railways/roles-of-organisations-in-the-uks-railways
The safety of the UK’s railway industry is heavily reliant on the quality of the relationships between a number of organisations, including the duty holders and the health and safety regulator. These roles are summarised below, and depicted in a diagram issued by the Rail Safety and Standards Board (RSSB).
1. Duty Holders
The main railway duty holders are infrastructure managers (IM) – companies responsible for infrastructure such as track, stations, signalling and electrification - and railway undertakings (RU) - the train operators. Each is responsible for its own part of the railway.
IMs and RUs are required to have a management system that ensures they safely manage the operation of their infrastructure and vehicles.
IMs and RUs are specifically required to carry out risk assessment and to apply the European Common Safety Method. They are also required to promote a ‘just culture’ which encourages their employees to report safety incidents and to carry out investigations in order that lessons are learnt.
IMs and RUs have a legal obligation to report certain types of rail accidents and incidents to the RAIB, and to cooperate fully with its investigations.
IMs or RUs have a duty to co-operate when taking action to safely operate their part of the railway system. This co-operation takes place at the strategic level; for example, in planning to manage interface risks, and at the tactical, local, and day to day level, where systems are in place to manage hazards and prevent accidents. This duty states that one party has to be ‘taking action’ ie leading the management of the risk. This requires up to date understanding of risks needing action, and a willingness to take the initiative in resolving it.
2. RSSB
RSSB was established in 2003 to address recommendations from the second part of Lord Cullen’s report following the Ladbroke Grove Rail inquiry. It was set up to meet the need for a system-wide perspective on standards, research, and a range of cross-industry functions. The Cullen Report recommended that a body, independent of the regulator and any single interest, should encourage collaboration and support the industry in managing risk.
RSSB provides tools, guidance and standards to help companies apply their safety management system as well as supporting safety incident reporting, risk assessment, and supplier management.
They provide information to help railway organisations take good safety related decisions, and manage safety efficiently. This includes regular safety performance reporting, such as the Annual Safety Performance Report. RSSB’s research and analysis helps find solutions to complex railway problems or opportunities, with a safety implication for the railway system.
3. Office of Rail and Road (ORR)
The ORR is the health and safety regulator for the railway. Its role is to protect the health and safety of everyone associated with the rail industry. They do this by encouraging railway businesses to have excellent health and safety management, ensure risks are properly identified and assessed, and comply with the law.