Hilton Hotels help give blind kids a sporting chance
Howard Lake | 8 June 2006 | Newswire
NEWS RELEASE
8th June For immediate release
HILTON HOTELS HELP GIVE BLIND KIDS A SPORTING CHANCE
Hilton’s charitable trust the ‘Hilton in the Community Foundation’ has generously donated £50,000 to Action for Blind People, enabling the visual impairment charity to continue setting up sports clubs for blind and partially sighted children and young people across the UK.
These clubs, known as Actionnaires, are fantastic in allowing visually impaired children the opportunity to experience a range of sporting activities in a safe, structured and fun environment outside of mainstream or specialist education. Part of the money has already contributed towards the running cost of a new club, which recently opened in Nottingham.
Simon Sheehan, Director of the Foundation, said: This innovative project really enables blind and partially sighted children to feel included in nearly all sporting activities. It is a pleasure for the Foundation to be supporting young people to fulfil their potential in this wayâ€.
One of the main aims of these clubs is to enable the children to build self-confidence and realise and achieve their own potential. Ultimately the children will be involved in mainstream participation with sighted children.
Caroline Fuseau, Corporate Development Team Leader at Action for Blind People, said: ‘We are thrilled to receive such a generous amount of money from Hilton. The funding will really help us to continue our vital work within local communities across the country. Helping children develop their confidence at a young age will have a positive long term impact on every aspect of their future lives. I would like to say a huge thank you to Hilton for helping Action for Blind People move towards achieving this.”
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For further information please contact Debbie Flatley on 020 7635 4921 or email: de************@ac******************.uk
Notes to editors:
• Research has shown that less than 30% of visually impaired children and young people meet the Government’s requirement of 2 hours PE per week.
• There are currently 15 Actionnaires clubs across the UK in Nottingham, Huddersfield, Portsmouth, Essex, Sunderland, Blackburn, Coventry, Manchester, Liverpool, West London, South London, Hull, Birmingham, Southampton and Peterborough
• Action for Blind People supports over 20,000 blind and partially sighted people in the UK every year. Action for Blind People’s National Freephone Helpline is 0800 915 4666.
• Action works to inspire change and create opportunities to enable blind and partially sighted people to have equal voice and equal choice and to live a full and valuable life.
• Action provides visually impaired people with opportunities through employment, housing, leisure and information and support.
For further information about the Hilton in the Community Foundation please contact Louise James, Grants & Fundraising Manager Lo**********@hi****.com or visit www.hilton-foundation.org.uk
About the Hilton the Community Foundation
Hilton in the Community Foundation was founded in 2001 as Hilton International’s charity dedicated to supporting young people worldwide in the communities that Hilton International serves. Focused on Education and Health, grants supporting disadvantaged young people are made in the UK and Ireland, while in the event of international disaster; grants are made to relief organisations at the Trustees’ discretion.
The Foundation’s core costs are funded by Hilton International, so all donations go directly to good causes. Donations are funded almost entirely through the generous efforts and contributions of Hilton team members, family and friends and with the support of Hilton guests and company suppliers.
About Howard Lake
Howard Lake is consultant editor of UK Fundraising. He founded the site in 1994 and successfully sold it in 2022. As director of Giving X Ltd he is exploring growing giving on a massive scale.
He is the founder of Fundraising Camp and co-founder of GoodJobs.