The company that supplies the transport needs of Hinkley Point C – Somerset Passenger Solutions – has appointed a new chaplain to strengthen pastoral care.

Chris Pollard joins SPS as its very first chaplain and brings a wealth of pastoral and community experience as well as being a qualified mental health first aider.

He is a chaplain to all faiths and none and will offer confidential and non-judgemental pastoral and spiritual support.

As well as supporting SPS, Chris will work alongside Ewen Huffman, the chaplain at Hinkley Point C (HPC), to provide support to the entire project workforce. Chris will be joining the HPC chaplaincy team as an associate chaplain and will become SPS’s own chaplain, assigned to the SPS team.

Chris said: “I am delighted to be joining the team at SPS. It’s a fantastic opportunity to join a truly forward-thinking company having their own dedicated chaplain.

“I’m looking forward to meeting the team and offering pastoral support where needed.”

Before joining SPS, Chris was a relationship manager at NatWest for 40 years, gaining a great deal of experience in working with and understanding people.

Bex Sinclair, SPS people director, said: “We are so pleased to have Chris join the SPS team. This fully supports our well-being and pastoral care strategy – putting our people first.”

SPS was formed in 2016 as a joint venture between First Group and JJP Holdings, to serve the passenger transport needs of Hinkley Point C.  In October 2021, First Bus completed purchase to take full control of SPS. 

Since 2016, it has seen huge growth. It began with 40 employees and eight vehicles increasing to more than 400 employees and a growing fleet of vehicles which will rise further as projects evolve and diversify.