That accolade has been bestowed on bus driver Sarwah Shah, 43, for the way he represented Reading Buses while working at the University of Reading graduation week driving shuttle buses between Whiteknights Campus and London Road Campus.
As a result, Sarwah, who has been a Reading Buses driver for five years, has been declared the company’s latest Star of the Month Award winner.
Sarwah, who lives in Reading, was described as having a ‘very positive can-do attitude’ and as always going out of his way to be helpful.
A colleague who was supervising the university graduation transport described Sarwah as an ‘outstanding ambassador’ after helping to make sure that some latecomers got to the ceremony, and as a result, he drew praise not only from the organisers, but the public with whom he was dealing.
A second Star of the Month Award has also been given to a man described as the ‘best trainer in the Academy.’
Luke Ballard, 45, who has worked at Reading Buses for 22 years and lives in Woodley, was nominated by a trainee.
“Even when the going gets tough, Luke continues to have a best attitude,” his nominee praised. “It’s amazing how he always helps new employees to learn and develop in the academy.”
Rounding out July, a nomination for the Reading Buses ‘Going the Extra Mile’ award features 77-year-old Dave Hughes, a bus driver for 25 years.
He was nominated by a duty manager for his assistance on a Saturday afternoon at a football match between Reading and West Ham. The game was very busy, so Dave, who lives in Whitley, stepped up and volunteered to assist the supervisor loading the buses and helping customers, providing a ‘helpful can-do attitude.’
Caroline Anscombe, HR Director, said: “Sarwah has demonstrated flexibility, helpfulness and a great work ethic, Luke has shown a real commitment to excellence in training new and existing drivers, and Dave showed a helpful can-do attitude.
“All three are excellent ambassadors for Reading Buses and it’s wonderful that we can recognise all of them for their consistently high performance.”