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Top That! Pizza Hut staff double charity target in parachute jump for mental health
Staff at Pizza Hut Restaurants have doubled their financial target and awareness for the UK’s leading mental health charity by taking part in a 30,000ft skydive.
On the 11th July 2017, six very brave head office personnel - including head of Loss Prevention Lee Ablett - leapt out of an aircraft and raised more than £6000 for Mental Health UK.
Lee Ablett said this week: “I would be lying if I said I was not apprehensive having never done anything like this before, but it was absolutely incredible. We aimed to raise £3000 and we have more than doubled that so it was all worthwhile.”
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, breaking the taboo and making it safe and accepted for people to put up their hand and say they’re suffering.
Mental Health UK is a network of charities across England, Wales and Scotland who collectively support almost 70,000 people every year suffering with mental health issues to get through crises, live independently and to realise they are not alone.
Known as 'Rethink Mental Illness' in England, 'Hafal' in Wales and 'Support in Mind Scotland' in Scotland, the charities run a number of helplines, support groups and provides housing solutions for those in need.
Gareth Hopley, Head of PR and Communications at Pizza Hut Restaurants, said: “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 the Mental Health UK charities, 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 also raise money to support the work the organisation does, both nationally and to fund chapters and events which are local to the restaurants. 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’.
Earlier this month, 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
To find out more about Mental Health UKTM and their network of charities, you can visit their website
