Belonging at Work: Amy and Ben on How Inclusion Fuels Career Growth at TPE
Category: LGBTQIA+ (Sexual Orientation), Neurodiversity
For colleagues Amy French and Ben McGowan, a sense of belonging has not only influenced their day-to-day lives but has also shaped their career paths with TPE.
Amy, our Accessibility & Equality Impact Officer, describes a ‘feeling of being at home at TPE’, and credits the support of her manager with helping her to embrace her autism diagnosis.

As well as being a member of our Neurodiversity Network, Amy is also leading on the development of our Neurodiversity Strategy to ensure other colleagues receive the support they need.
Watch our video to hear Amy’s story
Conductor Instructor Ben is part of both our Neurodiversity and LGBTQ+ networks, and credits TPE’s culture with empowering him to be his ‘authentic self’ since day one.
He states: “Being able to be a part of the amazing colleague networks such as our LGBTQ+ and Neurodiversity groups makes me feel I belong. My colleagues have come to know me and I’m not afraid to be myself with people who I meet for the first time.”
Since joining the organisation as a trainee conductor in 2022, Ben has completed a secondment as onboard interface training manager and is now a conductor instructor. He is just one of 120 colleagues who have experienced an internal promotion or secondment in the 2024/25 year to date.
Watch our video to hear Ben’s story
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