02 March 2009

London hotel partners with British forces charity

Newly-refurbished London hotel, The Royal Horseguards, has pledged to donate a significant five-figure sum to help British soldiers wounded in Afghanistan and Iraq.

The hotel’s new owner, Guoman Hotels, has formed a partnership with the Help For Heroes charity and the hotel’s neighbouring regiment The Household Cavalry.

The campaign kicked off with a fund-raising gala at the Whitehall hotel, which raised £3,500 through a prize draw and auction.

The Royal Horseguards and Guoman Hotels will help raise additional money for the charities over the next 12 months.

The group's other London hotels include The Tower (at Tower Bridge), the Cumberland (Marble Arch) and The Charing Cross.

All of these hotels will encourage staff and approximately over 3,000 visitors a day to make voluntary charitable donations.

The charitable cause was selected in recognition of the 280-room hotel’s historic past and its links to the Household Cavalry, Whitehall and Westminster.

The Household cavalry consists of The Blues and Royals (in which princes William and Harry have served) and The Life Guards.

Guoman Hotels chief operating officer Sanjay Nijhawan said: "The Royal Horseguards not only provides a warm welcome to guests seeking a distinctly British five-star experience, but it also sits right at the heart of the country’s Government and military headquarters and as such it has been home to many important meetings, decisions and operations throughout its history.

"It seemed appropriate to celebrate its official re-launch by recognising its location and heritage by making a commitment to two hugely relevant charitable organisations andand raise funds for the care of Britain’s wounded servicemen and women, to whom we owe so much."

By Bev Fearis