Local Community Support during COVID-19 8 July 2020

Following the hotel’s closure back in March, it quickly became clear that with no guests to feed, our  kitchens and the team’s expert talents were going to waste. After approaching the Watford Chamber of Conscience, the team joined forced with local charities Home Start and Small Acts of Kindness to provide hot meals for those in need, including frontline staff at Watford General Hospital.

So far, over 3,600 meals have been donated but we don’t intend to stop there.

As part of a consortia set up by Watford Chamber of Commerce, the team are able to hear of any local requests through a dedicated WhatsApp group. Being part of this network has meant we’ve been able to donate amenities such as:

• Over 8,000 bottles of water
• ESPA moisturisers for frontline workers hands
• 1,000 chocolate treats for Hertfordshire based children’s hospices and hospitals
• A raffle prize of an overnight stay for a charity bike ride to raise money for PPE

Plus, with a lack of guests requiring a comfy place to rest their head, we’ve also loaned our roll away beds to on-call doctors in desperate need of a little shut-eye.

But it’s not just imminent plans that have been considered. Once normality begins to return, we’re keen to show our appreciation to those working on the frontline. Having been in touch with the Lord Lieutenant of Hertfordshire, we’ve proposed to host a special event to thank them for all their incredible work…watch this space.