Cape Dreams News from in and around the Cape
By Megan Jacobs
Celebrity Services Africa
Cape Town’s landmark Peninsula All-Suite Hotel nominated in the Imvelo Awards for their numerous and far-reaching community involvement endeavours.
The Peninsula All-Suite Hotel, a seasoned luxury timeshare resort and hotel, has long been dedicated to empowering its surrounding community and fulfilling the role of a socially responsible corporate citizen. For its various community-strengthening endeavours, this hotel was nominated in the category of Best Social Involvement Programme in the prestigious Imvelo Awards.
The Imvelo Awards For Responsible Tourism, now in their 13th year, strive to recognise the establishments helping to build an ethos of corporate responsibility in the tourism sector.
The awards’ Best Practice for Social Involvement category considers those businesses which have made a great effort in ensuring the integration of their activities with their local communities.
“The Peninsula has always believed that it has a fundamental responsibility to assist in improving the lives of South Africans. Our Corporate Social Investment (CSI) policy is aligned to our overall mission and vision, which is to make positive, sustainable impact through investing in improving the quality of life of the communities in which our company operates, and in which our staff live,” says Chris Godenir, General Manager of the Peninsula.
This hotel has undertaken a wide range of programmes under its extensive CSI sector, including numerous projects for the SOS Children’s Village – a home for over 121 disadvantaged children in the community of Thornton.
The Peninsula’s relationship with SOS started in 2009 and continues to the present day. During this period, the hotel and its staff have contributed over R57 937.00 to the home in both cash contributions and improvements to its facilities.
In their “Charity Begins at Home” project, The Peninsula directly assists members of its staff in improving their lives. Through this programme, The Peninsula’s maintenance team is elected to repair the houses of staff to better their living conditions. So far, the team has repaired a severely fire-damaged home, and entirely refurbished another, much to the benefit of the staff members in question.
“We believe in fostering a happy, healthy staff, and the only way that we can ensure this is by actively helping them to improve their lives and living conditions,” adds Chris.
Staff also benefit from the hotel’s Paulus Wellness Day, which was started in honor and remembrance of a porter who died of Tubercolosis-related complications in 2009, and sees the Delft Clinic conducting a full wellness check on all staff and “inhouse” guests over a 2-day period once a year.
The hotel is furthermore involved in the Wish for a Dream foundation, the Jobstart Programme, Street Smart South Africa, Reach for a Dream, Mandela Day Beach Clean Up and numerous other initiatives.
