Recruitment
“Mags runs a village station in leafy Etchingham, Sussex.
She has brought the station alive. She knows all her customers by name, remembers their families, their little favourites and has transformed the station into the heart of the community. Every season and event is celebrated-from Christmas to Halloween. The cafe is promoted by her as are village taxis and social events.
In times of disruption, she organises the friendly customers to help each other with lifts to a different line. She also ensures she goes above and beyond to make sure everyone is safe, understands what’s going on and knows how best to get to their destination.
She is a true gem and deserves formal recognition for her hard work and dedication. She is one of the nicest people anyone could meet and a credit to the company.“
“Happy, cheerful and helpful. Went above and beyond to retrieve my lost weekly ticket. She located it and travelled in her own time to retrieve it from a station down the line.
When the trains don’t run (e.g. recent issues at Wadhurst) she organises car shares in the funniest way. Really endearing!
Always patient with the older customers using the machine and the school children also.“
“Maggie is always cheery at Etchingham station. She is always helpful and looks up the best route for the journey. When trains are not working Maggie tried to find you another line to get to work on. She has set up flower baskets in the station and fairy gardens which look brilliant.“
“Maggie is always friendly, patient and willing to go the extra mile to make her customer's journeys run as smoothly as possible. She recommends the best routes, best ticket prices and when things go wrong (which they often do) she deals with the situation with calmness, professionalism but above all with a can do attitude - if there are no trains she will organise passengers to help each other with lifts, she will know where to travel to get the best connection and always openly shares the information she has (which is often very limited but she does her very best). Maggie has brightened up the station building with various displays and clearly enjoys her role and looking after her customers. Etchingham is not my quickest route into London, I could travel from a different station and save 10mins, but I choose to go from Etchingham because I know I will get the information I need when things go wrong and my day will start with a smile. I only travelling a couple of days a week but Maggie still knows the ticket I need and asks how I am - I couldn't ask for more.“
“Maggie is a real pleasure to deal with. Bright and cheery and always willing to go the extra mile.“
“Maggie really looks after the station and all the passengers. She is always helpful when buying tickets and advising on the best routes and value.“
“We are a small village station and I travel by train regularly. Margaret is very much part of the station community, recognises me and is always very helpful in making sure I'm getting the best priced tickets.
If we have delayed or cancelled trains, she always does her best to try and get information so myself and other travellers can make plans around the problem. There are times when she has not been given information by the train company and has to deal with stressed-out complainers - she copes well with the pressure.
She sometimes sends us to the cafe to wait and then pops in to update us... a simple but much-appreciated effort.“
“Maggie welcomes every customer as if they were the only one. She makes Etchingham Station waiting room very colourful with pretty arrangements of flowers. She even appeals to her children passengers with two imaginative displays to attract fairies! Delightful!
With her own funds she also provides a box full of confectionery at the counter which passengers are at liberty to help themselves.
I only catch the train to London once or twice a month and this starts my day off very positively.“
“Maggie is great, always cheerful, helpful, and has done so much to jolly up the station.
She is a VERY good ambassador for Southeastern and deserves to be recognised for her efforts.“
“Maggie is always willing to give you undivided attention and make sure you get the best ticket appropriate for the journey. She is very patient and always helpful“
“Maggie is always cheerful and helpful. She keeps the booking office very neat and tidy and always adds little extras to brighten the day“
“Maggie puts life in the Etchingham station. She knows most of the people that transit through the station on a first name basis. She is always ready to share a smile with all of us; when the train comes, she steps out to make sure everybody is OK and is the nicest person, wishing everyone a good day. She is putting the personable elements that used to exist but are unfortunately long gone with most people. We all need more Maggie's in our life!“
“Travelling regularly out of Etchingham, Maggie has been with us for a couple of years, and filling Kenny's shoes was always going to be a big issue. However, Maggie fits in so well, it is as if she has been with us for ages. She always has the time for all train passengers regardless of how small their issue or question is. She is willing to check times, costs and alternative routes, making us all feel important. She has a wonderful sense of humour and manages delays, cancellations with efficiency and patience. I therefore have great pleasure in asking you to consider Maggie for this award.“
“Maggie goes out of her way to assist passengers in finding the correct ticket for them. Even when there is chaos with trains being cancelled or re-routed she manages to keep smiling and helping everyone.
I honestly believe she needs a medal.“
“Maggie is always cheerful and helpful. Our local station is Etchingham and Maggie makes sure that it is always looking its best, she adds flowers and decorations. There's always a bowl of sweets by the window and there is even a Fairy Garden.
I get the train at about 6.30 in the morning and Maggie is always smiling, chatty and even comes out to wish everyone a good day and wave us off from the platform. She goes above and beyond to try to make everyone's journey as pleasant as she can.
People are always quick to write in when it's bad, so it's nice to be able to help recognise good customer service. Keep up the good work Maggie.“
“Maggie is the best ambassador that SE Railways has, if it wasn't for her my faith in the company would have disappeared a long time ago and I would now be driving rather than taking the train. She somehow manages to ease the pain even on the most disrupted days. I never thought buying a ticket at the start of the day to commute to London could be so enjoyable!“
“Happy, cheerful and importantly part of the community. Always tries to help with ticketing queries.“
“Maggie is always friendly and helpful. She keeps the station ticket office looking beautiful. Most of all, when a family member of mine - who has mental health problems - was distressed at the station - she dealt with the problem with respect and kindness.“
“Maggie is always - without exception - a bright, friendly and thorough member of the Southeastern team. She never makes her customers feel rushed and goes above and beyond in her duties to make sure my ticket-purchasing and train journey to work goes as smoothly as is in her power to do so!
Employees such as Ms Capps should be celebrated and recognised as an asset to the rail company she works for. She is a real character and a rare treat amongst the Southeastern workforce team.“
“Maggie is always friendly, welcoming and very helpful.“
“Although retired, I travel regularly by train from Etchingham and it is a delight to see Maggie at the ticket office with her cheery smile and sense of humour. She is not only friendly but very knowledgeable about the train services. She knows the timetables and connections, the best tickets and gives as much information as she can in times of disruption.
There are just some people who make other people feel better, whatever the circumstances, and Maggie is one of them. I really hope she wins this award as recognition for her going the extra mile.“
“I would like to nominate Maggie Capps for the “Customer Service Awardâ€. Because I have seen her give excellent customer service to her customers. She is always polite, responsive and highly proactive.
When I am queueing for a ticket or for help with a ticket. I watch her serve the customers in front me. She always solves their ticketing and price issues. By explaining the routes and costs. I also notice that people tend to prefer to queue at her till rather than use the platform ticket machine. Because it’s quicker.“
“Maggie is one of those unique individuals who no matter what pressure she is under in her role, she retains her composure with a smile. She is accommodating and patient. The ticket office is always clean and tidy with a small bowl of sweets on hand for weary commuters and travelling children. In the many years I have commuted to London, and the many stations I have departed from, this is the best and Maggie deserves the recognition for the key part she plays in the stations high standards.“
“Maggie put a smile on your face, she takes the clouds out of the sky!
Always a warm welcome to our small station and always willing to share travel information and special offers, her knowledge of routes is second to none.
She will keep you on TRACK and give all the right SIGNALS to get you to your destination, bringing light to the end of your TUNNEL on the gloomiest of days! Maggie is a shining star!“
“Like the General Manager of a hotel, Maggie provides excellent customer service, whilst keeping her customers under firm control without them even noticing.
She gives excellent advice and service in a friendly and approachable way, and is a huge asset to Southeastern.“
“Maggie is helpful, always friendly, and always has time to get you the best deal/give advice on the best route to travel/cheapest ticket. Nothing is too much trouble and she is genuinely always smiling and happy even at 6am! I don’t know how she does it.
Maggie provides service with a smile but more than that, she is genuinely a people person with a wonderful disposition who wants to help, wants to ensure you pay the correct price and wants people to enjoy their journey. Maggie deserves this award.“
“She makes a top job of managing Etchingham Station and of dealing with customers. When things go wrong she persists in putting them right and in keeping customers informed as things progress. She is always patient and knows and handles her job in a pleasant way.
Top lady!“
“Maggie is the fantastic station manager for Etchingham. Her customer service skills are excellent; she is always friendly, she manages to remain cheerful, positive and unflustered whatever service disruptions are in play, and she is also highly efficient; managing long ticket queues quickly but always with a calm and friendly manner. She also has an unsurpassed knowledge of fares, and with regard to the optimal route to any more complex destination at any point in time - incredibly helpful. In addition she has really brightened up and improved the station's waiting room. I'm always really pleased to see Maggie when I arrive at the ticket office; her smile and sense of humour are a real tonic.“
“Maggie brightens my every Monday morning! She is unfailingly sunny come rain, shine or snow, running Etchingham station with a life-enhancing sense of humour which belies her efficiency and intimate knowledge of the network. She has decorated the station to great effect and on occasions when there are delays it is a good place to be. Thank you so much, Maggie.“
“Great smile even on a rainy day. Often witness her going above and beyond to help a customer, once staying behind to see a sick customer got the help they needed..“
“Maggie is always cheerful and so helpful - she takes time to assist each of her customers. She works hard to make the waiting room comfortable and pleasant for everyone.“
“I didn't think you could top last year, which was the first RailStaff Awards I went to. But this year well and truly surpassed it. Everything from the layout, theme, awards presentation, (the hosts fabulous jacket!) to the entertainment. My guests were amazed by it and I was very lucky to be part of it. I am sure you guys had a bigger turn out then last year? Also the live band - what a great addition.”
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