Southeastern partners with Sonder to boost staff wellbeing and minimise disruption

Southeastern, one of the UK’s busiest rail operators, has announced a new partnership with employee healthcare platform Sonder to strengthen staff wellbeing, reduce absenteeism, and minimise passenger disruption.

Improving frontline staff wellbeing

Operating over 2,000 train services a day for more than 500,000 daily passengers, Southeastern plays a critical role in connecting London, Kent and East Sussex. With a 4,500-strong workforce across 165 stations and the UK’s first domestic high-speed service, staff availability is central to service reliability.

When safety-critical employees such as drivers are absent, the impact can be significant, with up to five trains cancelled and more than 5,000 passengers affected. Recognising the link between employee wellbeing and service delivery, Southeastern has implemented Sonder’s integrated care platform to give its staff 24/7 access to health, mental health and safety support.

Alex South, Head of HR Shared Services at Southeastern, said:

Our people are central to the service we deliver. Sonder gives our teams fast, trusted access to care, whether it’s health-related, emotional, or promoting personal safety. The feedback has been overwhelmingly positive, and we’re already seeing impactful engagement across the company.”

Early results show strong engagement

Within just two months of rollout, 20% of Southeastern’s workforce had engaged with Sonder – far exceeding the 2–5% uptake typically reported for traditional Employee Assistance Programmes (EAPs). Half of those contacting Sonder accessed counselling services, while one in three reached a GP through the platform.

Rosie Corriette, Occupational Health and Contracts Manager at Southeastern, commented:

Sonder integrates preventative, data-led care directly into our operations, cutting response time, reducing risk and strengthening workforce resilience. In a service such as ours, this is about precision, continuity and delivering every day.”

Sonder’s model prioritises early intervention and offers employees near-instant connections with qualified clinicians. The platform’s mobile-first accessibility ensures it works effectively for a diverse, shift-based workforce spread across multiple locations.

Reducing disruption and driving efficiencies

The partnership has already shown measurable benefits. In one case, an employee who suffered a minor injury was able to consult with a nurse through the Sonder app, return safely to work after one day, and avoid a longer absence. The intervention saved an estimated £5,600 in productivity and occupational health costs.

Sonder’s Co-Founder & CEO, Craig Cowdrey, said:

In essential industries like rail, where every individual plays a critical role, it’s vital that employees have fast, trusted access to care – so they can feel safe, supported, and perform at their best.”

Supported by union representatives, the platform is also being used to inform workforce planning and absence management through data-driven insights. Southeastern is positioning employee wellbeing not only as a human priority, but also as an operational strategy to keep services running smoothly.