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As Hospitality Action marks the fifth anniversary of its first COVID grant, the charity reports that it has seen a “lasting rise in demand for support”, making 2024 its “most challenging year yet”.
According to its latest Impact Report, a surge in grant applications last year was driven by mounting debt, soaring living costs, unstable work patterns and declining mental health. Reflecting the deepening crisis faced by thousands of hospitality workers across the UK, the charity said it “provided financial and emotional support to more hospitality households facing hardship than ever before”.
Complex ‘Red Flag’ cases, where individuals faced the threat of imminent homelessness due to unpaid rent, council tax or utility bills became increasingly common. The number of emergency ‘same day’ payments awarded to prevent immediate eviction outstripped figures from the previous two years combined, highlighting the “significant and ongoing impact’ of the cost of living crisis on the sector.
It revealed in order to help workers regain financial stability, Hospitality Action made vital referrals to its specialist debt partner, PayPlan, connecting beneficiaries with debt solutions, payment plans and write-offs. The charity’s partnership with Shelter also provided critical housing advice through its Helpline Plus service ensuring those in crisis had access to expert guidance.
In addition to debt support, in 2024 the charity introduced a new focus – income maximisation – with the recruitment of a dedicated Benefits Advisor thanks to the generosity of the Savoy Educational Trust.
With extensive knowledge of the UK benefits system and discretionary grants landscape, within just seven months this service unlocked more than £194,000 in previously unclaimed state benefits which hard-pressed beneficiaries were not able to access on their own.
Now in its 11th year, the charity’s Employee Assistance programme (EAP) continued to provide support to the hospitality workforce, offering everything from legal advice and personal counselling to menopause and addiction support. Now serving 195,000 employees in nearly 500 businesses, the programme has become an “essential lifeline” for the sector. 2024 experienced a significant surge in demand, with calls to the EAP adviceline rising by 25% to 7,938, driven largely by concerns around stress, anxiety, finances and relationships.
Hospitality Action’s Golden Friends scheme, designed to keep loneliness and isolation at bay, also supported more than 2,000 older beneficiaries in 2024. Alongside offering wellbeing support and financial hardship grants, 241 milestone birthday flowers were sent, and 4,000 personalised birthday and Christmas cards and 6,384 newsletters were posted to help ensure that retirees stay connected.
The charity’s 2024 Taking The Temperature industry-wide survey – which has cemented itself as the industry’s definitive benchmarking tool for hospitality wellbeing – uncovered some alarming statistics. Most notably, the number of hospitality workers reporting mental health struggles at some point in their careers reached 76% – an increase of 12% since 2020.
When asked to identify the top three challenges hospitality workers expected to face in the next 12 months, 60% cited maintaining a good work/life balance whilst mental health and finances were reported by 44% and 42% respectively.
The charity said the level of support achieved in 2024 was made possible thanks to Hospitality Action’s remarkable fundraising calendar of events. From Back to the Floor and Bike to Care, to Walk for Wellbeing and Spirit of Hospitality, these four events alone raised more than three quarters of a million pounds.
Mark Lewis, chief executive at Hospitality Action, said: “I don’t think any of us quite predicted the unprecedented surge in calls for help we experienced throughout 2024. We answered more helpline calls, delivered more counselling sessions and awarded over £1m in grants – more than in any previous year since the darkest days of the pandemic.
“This has only served to strengthen our resolve to support as many of our hospitality colleagues as possible. Supporting Hospitality Action isn’t just vital for our industry, it’s a smart investment in the wellbeing and resilience of your business and workforce too.”
