Zoe on target with life goals

Torquay postie and Plymouth Argyle skipper

Zoe Cunningham on delivering for her colleagues and teammates after a life-changing spell on the sidelines.

It’s coming up to 5am in Torquay as Zoe Cunningham pulls on her kit and laces up her boots. Serving her South Devon customers means tackling up to 15 miles of unforgiving hills every morning. But this plucky postie has never been one to shy away from a challenge.

When Zoe’s not marching up and down the hills of Torquay delivering mail, she’s running up and down a pitch delivering results as the captain of Plymouth Argyle Women FC.

After a spell with Reading Reserves –including first-team call-ups for Women’s Super League fixtures – Zoe joined Plymouth. But despite her success on the pitch, Zoe’s struggles with alcohol were getting harder and harder to control.

Unsure where to turn, Zoe confided in colleagues at Royal Mail.

“My line managers were brilliant and understood what I needed without putting any pressure on me,” she says. “There are policies in place to help and in January 2020 I had around four months off and went to a rehabilitation centre.

“I was really quite unwell, but Royal Mail supported me through all that, and with my return to work. They put a lot into me, which gave me an even bigger incentive to work hard and give something back.”

WHY I’M HERE

It’s a sporting accolade that’s taken years of hard graft and dedication, plus a great deal of personal soul searching as Zoe faced up to being an alcoholic.

“I was playing for Reading Reserves but my life was starting to fall apart,” recalls Zoe. “I’ve had a good football career my whole life, and I got to the point where I couldn’t do it any more.”

From the age of nine, Zoe was spending time at Arsenal Women’s Centre of Excellence, training alongside future England captain and European Championship winner Leah Williamson OBE.

Now three years sober, Zoe credits the support she received from the business with helping her overcome one of the most difficult times of her life. The icing on the cake, she says, was getting back on the pitch for Plymouth and being given the skipper’s armband.

“After taking a year off to get sober, I’ve returned as captain and one of the more senior players in the team, which is a great feeling.”

Zoe’s seeing her career off the pitch go from strength to strength, too. After starting out as a postie in Brixham six years ago, she’s spent the last year as a trainee manager at Torquay Delivery Office.

“I still have support from the people I work with on a daily basis. My sick record was horrendous before I got sober, but it’s never been held against me.

“I used to keep a lot to myself – not just from people at work but everyone around me. As soon as I was honest about what I was going through and what I was struggling with, I got the help I needed.

“I’ve been given a second chance and it’s brilliant.”

WELLBEING HUB

Access health and wellbeing services at royalmail.com/wellbeing or call 0345 266 5060 for free and independent, 24/7 employee assistance.