Barnsley bus driver wins award for quick thinking over sandwich incident

A Driver from Stagecoach Yorkshire has been given a prestigious award in recognition of her calm and quick-thinking in providing medical assistance to a woman on her bus.

Gillian Thompson, from Stagecoach’s Barnsley depot, won a Stagecoach Star of the Month Award, in the category of ‘We do the right thing’, after showing care and compassion for the woman, who was clearly in distress.

The woman was choking on a sandwich and Gillian responded quickly to this potentially dangerous situation, acting fast to stop her bus and to offer assistance, whilst also calling the emergency services and keeping her other passengers informed.

In adjudicating the award, the judges considered that Gillian’s calm and professionalism had meant that the passenger received the medical attention she needed faster than she might otherwise have done.

Making the award, Matt Kitchin, Managing Director of Stagecoach Yorkshire, said: “I am so proud of the thoughtful and compassionate way that Gillian approached what was a very difficult situation – and to the rest of the team and the emergency services who worked quickly and professionally to offer what help they could.

“Our thoughts are with this woman and it just goes to show that, as people who run local buses, we are very much part of the local communities we serve – because they are our communities. This recognition highlights the importance of the professionals who make up our team at all levels – they will regularly go out of their way to offer help to our loyal customers.”

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