Whitbread Hotels and Restaurants announces Wateraid as chosen charity

Whitbread Hotels and Restaurants announces Wateraid as chosen charity

Whitbread Hotels and Restaurants has today announced its support for WaterAid, the international charity that saves thousands of children’s lives every year by enabling the world’s poorest people to gain access to safe water, sanitation and hygiene education.

Whitbread, which owns budget hotel chain Premier Inn and pub restaurants Beefeater, Brewers Fayre, Table Table and Taybarns, is aiming to raise £1 million for WaterAid in the next two years through a series of fundraising activities.
Last year alone, Whitbread Hotels and Restaurants donated over £500,000 to charitable partners, with £150,000 of that raised by team members across the country.

WaterAid’s mission is to overcome poverty by enabling the world’s poorest people to gain access to safe water, sanitation and hygiene education. WaterAid aims to work with local partners to help an extra 1.5 million people gain access to water and sanitation every year by 2010.

Patrick Dempsey, Managing Director of Whitbread Hotels and Restaurants said: ‘Pledging to raise £1 million for WaterAid is a big challenge, but one that I’m sure our team members will embrace whole-heartedly. It’s easy to take clean, fresh water for granted and WaterAid’s tireless work in giving the world’s poorest people access to safe water shows that not everyone is so lucky. We are delighted to be supporting them, and the money raised by Whitbread will go a long way to enabling WaterAid reach their targets by 2010.’

According to WaterAid’s Chief Executive Barbara Frost: “One in eight people in the world do not have access to safe water and every day 4000 children die from water-related diseases. Without these basic human rights millions of people are prevented from overcoming poverty and so we’re thrilled that Whitbread Hotels and Restaurants have chosen to support our work. When you think that for as little as £15 a family can get a lasting supply of water as well as improved sanitation, Whitbread’s generosity - particularly in this difficult economic climate - will transform the lives of some of the world’s poorest communities beyond recognition.”

For more information, visit www.wateraid.org

Image credit to WaterAid/Eva-Lotta Jansson.