Pizza Hut Restaurants take to the skies for Mental Health UK!
On 11th July 2017, six very brave individuals from Pizza Hut Restaurants head office took part in a 30,000 ft skydive, all in aid of charity. Pizza Hut Restaurants have been proudly supporting Mental Health UK for just over a year, with a goal of raising awareness of mental health in the work place, helping to change attitudes, so that anyone feels able to ask for support if they need it.
Mental Health UK is a network of charities across England, Wales, Northern Ireland, and Scotland who collectively support almost 90,000 people every year living with mental health problems – to get through crises, to live independently and to realise they are not alone.
Pizza Hut Restaurants supports the work of three out of the four founding charity partners of Mental Health UK: ‘Rethink Mental Illness’ in England, ‘Adferiad Recovery’ in Wales and ‘Change Mental Health’ in Scotland. The charities run services and support groups across the UK for people who are directly affected by mental illness and for carers.
Gareth Hopley, Head of PR and Communications at Pizza Hut Restaurants, spoke of the decision behind the partnership:
“When partnering with a charity, we felt it’s really important that our values and philosophies align. We are very much a ‘front to back’ company – we know that our people are what drive our business, and we have worked hard to craft an environment in which to feel happy and supported. We felt that the Mental Health UK group of charities fitted really well – they are totally focused on the wellbeing of every person they work with.
By supporting Mental Health UK , we’re supporting our customers, our people and our values. The hospitality industry is the fourth largest employer in the UK, and at Pizza Hut Restaurants it is our belief that ‘you’ll never make your customers feel better than you make your people feel’. We focused our culture on being the ‘Best of Me’ and the ‘Best of Us’, and we have worked hard to balance high skills training with behavioural and emotional development. With this in mind, we are keen for our people to feel more comfortable and have the confidence to talk about their difficulties without fear of judgement. It’s our duty to raise awareness of issues around mental health and help break the taboo!”
Like any charity, Mental Health UK requires financial support in order to keep providing vital services for those who need them. Pizza Hut Restaurants are engaging in a range of activities to raise funds to support the charity’s work. So far team members have climbed mountains, shaved heads, washed cars, and one team member is currently driving to Russia as part of ‘The Mongol Rally’.
Just last week, six members of head office took part in a charity skydive over Cambridgeshire in an effort to boost funds and so far, their total stands at £6,000. Lee Ablett, Profit Protection Manager, took part in the jump and is overwhelmed at the support he and his colleagues have received so far.
“We set out to raise £3,000 which we thought might be tough to reach. The support and generosity of those who have donated so far has been incredible, to think we’ve raised so much money for such a wonderful cause has made all those nerves worth it!”
The donation page is still open, if you would like to donate you can do so here : https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/PizzaHutRestaurants
