About Us. Our Impact.
This page outlines what we’ve achieved since 2020 and suggests ways you can help us do more.
Over the last four years the hospitality sector has faced unprecedented challenges. It was amongst the hardest hit by the pandemic, and the subsequent supply-chain shocks and cost-of-living crisis are fuelling a collapse in the viability of countless hospitality businesses. Many continue to fail, placing even more livelihoods at risk.
We have thrown our arms around an industry sector in turmoil providing emotional support to over 200,000 workers via our Grant giving, Employee Assistance Programme, Advisory Services, Helplines and Golden Friends retiree outreach scheme.
We continue to lead the way in financial, practical and emotional support to some of the most vulnerable people in society.
Our constantly evolving service provision has been possible thanks to award-winning innovation in fundraising.
Since the start of 2020...
How we’ve helped.
Hospitality Action has a strong heritage supporting the hospitality sector, and we’ve been well-placed to quickly mobilise in response to the shocks it has endured in the past five years.
We help hospitality people by providing financial assistance and advice to those in extreme poverty or dealing with physical or mental health challenges. Since the start of 2020, we have spent over £5,000,000 and awarded more than 15,000 grants to hospitality households across the UK.
Alongside our grant making activities, we provide advice, mental health support and signposting to the whole hospitality workforce via an online advice hub and 24-hour helpline. Since 2020 we have answered more than 38,000 helpline calls and delivered 11,306 counselling sessions.
Our Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) is the gold standard in employee care, providing comprehensive wraparound support with access to counsellors and experts in areas such as parenting, legal matters and debt management. Developed specifically for the industry, the scheme also features specific managerial resources and trauma support in the event of a critical incident. Our EAP currently protects more than 200,000 employees and their families.
More than 2,000 older beneficiaries have membership of our Golden Friends scheme, a befriending and contact scheme designed to keep loneliness and isolation at bay. Members benefit from a dedicated helpline and receive birthday and Christmas cards plus quarterly newsletters designed to help them get the best out of life and to stay connected to the industry.
Primary reason for application*
*Most applications for help report multiple issues, such as ill health and poverty, therefore we report the primary reason.
Age range of beneficiaries
Our support nationwide
How we fundraise.
Every penny Hospitality Action awards to beneficiaries is only possible thanks to the generosity of our wonderful supporters. We’re fortunate to host a variety of outstanding fundraising events across the UK and collaborate with hundreds of operators, suppliers, institutional funders, and individuals who recognise the joy hospitality brings to their lives and want to support it during challenging times.
Back to the Floor saw over 80 of the UK’s most iconic hoteliers test their silver service skills for 500 eager guests. The event took place at Park Plaza London Westminster Bridge, and raised a record-breaking £265,000.
Cotswold Cycle Challenge marked a triumphant return after a five-year hiatus. The event, hosted by Calcot & Spa, brought together 100 intrepid cyclists from every corner of the hospitality industry to raise £26,000.
Chef’s Dinner at the Lowry Hotel, Manchester, saw a team of the North’s finest chefs, including Simon Shaw and Shaun Rankin, cook up a storm to raise an incredible £18,000.
Bike to Care Gala Dinner, marked the 2024 Bike to Care Burgundy cycle challenge. A glorious fundraising gala took place at Nobu London Portman Square, where more than £100,000 was raised.
The South West Polo Day returned to the renowned Beaufort Polo Club in Gloucestershire, where eight award-winning regional chefs raised over £50,000.
The Summer Challenge continued to invigorate the industry’s competitive side. We called on supporters to rise to the occasion and collectively travel 40,000 miles in 11 days. Their incredible efforts raised over £40,000.
Chefs’ Dinner at Rudding Park, Harrogate, saw Tim Allen, Nigel Haworth, Ruth Hansom and Adam Jones dazzle guests and raise over £10,000.
Walk for Wellbeing, powered by UK hospitality talent partner mum, invited the nation to take strides towards promoting better wellbeing whilst raising funds to support our vital work. Over 1,000 participants took part and raised £140,000.
The Spirit of Hospitality, the 3,000-mile journey across the Atlantic taken on by HA Ambassadors Chris Mitchell and Robbie Laidlaw was complete in January 2024. For 38 days the pair battled 20 foot waves and extreme heat to win their class in the World’s Toughest Row and raise more than £250,000.
Winter Chefs’ Dinner in association with Icelandic Glacial Water, saw eight of London’s finest chefs cook up a gastronomic feast at our exceptional fundraising dinner at Raffles London at The OWO. A tremendous £93,000 was raised in the process.
Winter Online Auction in association with Square, raised over £20,000 thanks to the generosity of 51 prize donors from the likes of the Ritz London and The Waterside Inn, as bighearted supporters placed their bids just in time for Christmas.
Download our impact report social video here.
Download assetsDownload our latest impact report here.
Download PDFTatiana’s Story.
Behind every statistic there’s a person with a story to tell.
Restaurant manager Tatiana initially applied to us to fund a dishwasher for her home.
When we contacted her, it quickly became clear that her needs were far greater than just a new dishwasher, and that we could do much more to help.
Tatiana contracted blood poisoning while on holiday. She became terribly ill and nearly died. The operation to save her life resulted in the amputation of all four of her limbs.
Tatiana loves working in the restaurant sector... and she loves to dance.
But her standard-issue NHS prosthetic limbs simply wouldn’t give her the mobility and independence she longed for.
Tatiana is a go-getter and set up her own crowdfunding campaign to buy her more advanced prosthetics, but it ended with a shortfall.
We covered the gap, so that Tatiana could claim back her mobility, her independence, and her freedom, return to work - and start dancing again.