Pioneering digital compliance for Service Quality Regimes across the rail network
How mpro5 helped Northern become the first rail franchise to adopt a fully digital Service Quality Regime.
The railway industry is under increasing pressure to demonstrate performance and, for Northern, that meant finding a smarter way to manage their Service Quality Regime (SQR) obligations.
Northern became the first franchise in the UK to adopt a fully digital SQR system, built on mpro5’s intelligent compliance platform.
Auditors and operational staff now use their own devices to record their work and conduct audits in real time, replacing an outdated system that was undermining data accuracy and straining relationships with key stakeholders.
Together, we’ve built a platform that keeps Northern compliant and continuously improving.
The Challenge
Northern’s existing SQR software was failing to deliver on the core requirements of their franchise agreement with Rail North Partnership (RNP). Without accurate data, compliance reporting had become a time-consuming burden, and trust in the data itself had broken down.
Northern were struggling with a number of challenges:
- Providing accurate SQR scoring to RNP, putting franchise obligations at risk
- Generating meaningful data without extensive manual intervention
- Giving management real-time visibility into audit performance and areas for improvement.
- The consequences went beyond operational inefficiency: strained stakeholder relationships and reputational risk.
THE SOLUTION
We designed mpro5 for Northern’s team specifically around their SQR obligations. We tagged every carriage across the fleet, allowing staff to tap in and confirm which carriage they are auditing at any given time.
Real-time mobile data capture: Auditors and operational staff use their devices to record work on the go, with data transmitted instantly to mpro5.
Automated fault reporting and re-inspections: Any issues identified during an audit are automatically reported to the relevant contractors or internal teams.
Structured compliance reporting: All data is collated in a format that meets the regulatory requirements set by the Department for Transport.
Live management dashboards: Every step of the audit process is logged and reported in real time, giving management and stakeholders the insight they need.
THE RESULTS
Since implementing mpro5, Northern has transformed the reliability and efficiency of their SQR operations:
- Trust in SQR data fully restored with Rail North Partnership, with measurable improvement in scores
- Manual compliance burden eliminated through automated data capture and reporting
- Real-time audit visibility enabling management to proactively identify and address issues
- Automated SLA monitoring preventing regulatory breaches before they occur
- Northern established as the first UK rail franchise to operate a fully digital SQR system
Northern’s teams can now focus on delivering an exceptional passenger experience, while mpro5 ensures that compliance obligations are met automatically.
THE IMPACT
The Northern and mpro5 partnership demonstrates what’s possible when rail operators commit to genuine digital transformation.
By replacing a failing system with an intelligent, purpose-built platform, Northern has restored trust with their regulator and set a new benchmark for how Service Quality Regimes should be managed.
Together, we’re helping to shape the future of digital compliance in rail.
