Delay Attribution Team Leader

First Group; Swindon; On-site; GBP 80,000 - 100,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading train operator in the UK is looking for an experienced professional to lead their Delay Attribution team in Swindon. This pivotal role involves investigating incidents, resolving disputes with internal and Network Rail colleagues, and ensuring accurate delay management. The ideal candidate should possess strong communication and negotiation skills, with a proactive approach to improving service reliability. The position offers competitive benefits, including free rail travel and comprehensive training.

Benefits

Defined benefit pension scheme

Free rail travel for you and family

Discounted travel with other companies

Company-sponsored health care plan

Discounted shopping and gym membership

Qualifications

• Experience in Delay Attribution preferred but not essential.
• Proven ability to lead and motivate a team.
• Experience resolving disputes effectively.

Responsibilities

• Ensure accurate attribution of delays and cancellations.
• Manage disputed incidents within contractual timescales.
• Lead and develop the team of Delay Attributors.
• Identify causes of delays to drive improvement.
• Oversee investigations and escalate as necessary.

Skills

Clear communication skills

Strong negotiation abilities

Relationship building

Attention to detail

Proactive approach

Tools

TRUST

BUGLE

Integrale

Job description

Be Part of a Journey Like No Other – Join GWR

At Great Western Railway, we're more than a train company - we're the proud custodians of Brunel's iconic railway, one of the most prestigious networks in the world. With over 100 million passenger journeys each year and more than 275 destinations across the Southwest, South Wales and London, we deliver travel experiences through some of the UK's most beautiful landscapes and top tourist spots.

We're not standing still. With a modern fleet and ambitious plans for growth, we're transforming the way people think about rail travel: relaxing, fast, efficient, friendly and fun.

Our team of 6,000+ passionate colleagues - from engineers to on-board hosts - play a vital role in this transformation. And their efforts are paying off with GWR's Customer satisfaction score of 92% - our highest in 20 years!

These results show what's possible when teamwork, pride and passion drive everything we do. We've set a new standard. Now we're looking for more great people to help us keep raising it.

Ready to join something exceptional? Discover opportunities at GWR and be part of our journey.

About the Team

The Delay Attribution team are part of the Performance team and are based in Western House, Swindon. The team are mainly located in the integrated control centre alongside the control team who are responsible for the real-time delivery of the GWR train service.

Performance is consistently a leading indicator of customer satisfaction. Our attribution team keep their finger on the pulse of operations and proactively review business problems to deliver improvements in our service delivery. We use data from a diverse range of sources, taking advantage of new technology to provide information for colleagues across the business to understand issues affecting the punctuality and reliability of GWR services.

About the job

In this pivotal position, you will be the key link in investigating incidents and resolving disputes with our internal and Network Rail colleagues, ensuring everything is handled fairly and in line with contractual requirements.

You will also lead, coach, and inspire a team of Delay Attributors—developing their skills, setting high standards, and ensuring the accuracy of delay attribution that drives meaningful performance improvements across the network.

This isn't just about processes and paperwork—it's about people, collaboration, and the impact you'll have on keeping rail services reliable for millions of passengers.

Your main responsibilities will be

• Ensuring the accurate and efficient attribution of delays and cancellations to GWR services.

• Protecting GWR's interests by managing disputed incidents within contractual timescales and industry guidance.

• Leading and motivating a team of Delay Attributors, driving their performance and supporting their training and development.

• Identifying recurring causes of delays and working with senior managers to deliver continuous improvement across the business.

• Overseeing investigations, escalating incidents where necessary, and briefing the Performance Measurement Manager on key issues.

• Maintaining a robust, auditable record of all disputed incidents and their resolution.

• Acting as level 2 dispute resolution escalation point

What we're looking for

• Clear communication skills and confident leadership that motivates colleagues from all backgrounds.

• Strong negotiation abilities and experience resolving disputes fairly.

• A proven ability to build and maintain excellent relationships across all levels of an organisation.

• Attention to detail and the ability to balance multiple priorities while meeting strict deadlines.

• A proactive, self-motivated approach and resilience in a fast-paced environment.

• Ideally, experience in Delay Attribution and knowledge of systems such as TRUST, BUGLE, or Integrale (though this is not essential).

About the location

The team is based in Swindon in the Network Rail Integrated Control Centre. There are excellent public transport links.

Working Pattern

Working hours are Monday to Friday office hours with a need to work flexibly on occasion

The Reward

As well as a great team environment and comprehensive training, all GWR colleagues enjoy a range of benefits including:

• on-going development,
• defined benefit pension scheme with the Railways Pension Scheme,
• free rail travel across the GWR network for you and your family,
• discounted travel with other Train Operating Companies,
• company-sponsored health care plan,
• discounted shopping and gym membership,
• employee assistance programme and much more.

We all belong at GWR. This is our vision for providing an inclusive environment for all our colleagues, ensuring all candidates have an equal opportunity to access meaningful employment.

We value our differences such as age, gender, LGBTQIA, ethnicity, religion and disability. We maintain zero tolerance towards any form of prejudice towards our colleagues, customers, and future talent.

We celebrate and encourage diversity of thought, progressive ways of working and seeing all our colleagues grow and thrive.

We review all roles and job descriptions to ensure they are accessible and, where possible, we support and provide flexible working options; we recommend that you refer to each vacancy description for further details.

If you require additional support to complete your application due to a disability or neurodivergent condition such as dyslexia, dyspraxia, or autism, please follow the links below. We encourage you to share any additional needs you may require so we can provide a fair and equal process for all who apply.

https://exceptionalindividuals.com/neurodiversity/

https://www.healthassured.org/blog/neurodiversity/

INGWR