Launched in 2019, the This Can Happen Awards celebrates and recognises companies and individuals who have shown excellence in their approach towards positive mental wellbeing for their employees and colleagues.

The Most Inspiring Mental Wellbeing Champion/Ally Award allows companies to recognise an outstanding champion or ally who has shown dedication in supporting their colleagues. 

Vikky is VolkerRail’s lead mental health champion, and works with more than 40 mental health champions who support our 1,150 employees’ wellbeing. Vikky has focused her efforts on the specific challenges faced by our site based operatives, and has pioneered the Building Relationships On Site (BROS) programme, which has helped to make previously uncomfortable conversations feel comfortable.

BROS is based on the concept of colleagues looking out for each other, and teaches operatives how to recognise changes to a person’s behaviour, helping operatives build their own self-awareness.

Judges were impressed by Vikky’s passion for mental health, as well as the vision to put the framework for the BROS programme in place, noting that her approach has empowered workers resulting in improved mental health.

Judges also praises her understanding of the business, her use of data to inform the strategy and her use of the BROS acronym and concept as a ‘hook’ to engage a traditionally masculine workforce, along with as how she has highlighted a problem that exists across the construction industry, and how a macho culture can become a hotspot for poor mental health.

Commenting, Vikky said: “Getting to speak about the BROS initiative at the This Can Happen event and hearing everyone’s stories was amazing. I met some amazing people and other finalists, and I am absolutely over the moon to have won this award.”

“Sometimes, men’s mental health can be overlooked, but as our operatives all travel, work and live together, if they can learn how to notice changes in behaviour, and how to approach conversations to better understand, it will make a huge difference to everyone’s working environment and colleague support”

Stuart Webster-Spriggs, VolkerRail’s HSQES director, said: “We are so proud of what Vikky has achieved, and we are delighted that her efforts have been recognised.

“BROS is a great initiative, and we are already seeing the approach adopted by other organisations across the industry – long may this continue.”