Hays Travel celebrated 23 long-serving colleagues at a dinner in Durham hosted by Dame Irene Hays.
Staff members from retail branches in the North and head office departments reaching 10, 20 and 30-years of service milestones, receiving a unique piece of Sunderland studio glass from the National Glass Centre and a Hays Travel voucher to redeem against their own holiday. Among those being recognised was chief operating officer Jonathon Woodall-Johnston, who has been with Hays Travel for 20 years, having joined as an apprentice in 2005.
Dame Irene Hays said: “Loyalty is one of our core values and we actively look for opportunities to recognise those colleagues who have consistently contributed to Hays Travel’s success. This annual celebration event is a thank you to our people who have been with us for ten, twenty, and even thirty years.
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“It was a particular highlight to recognise so many colleagues who joined us as apprentices, including our chief operating officer Jonathon Woodall-Johnston. His career and those of others who have forged successful careers in travel truly inspire our apprentices – we currently have over 500 in the business. My congratulations to everyone celebrating their service milestones and thank you for your loyalty to Hays Travel.”
Retail director Jane Schumm added: “We recognise our colleagues’ loyalty as early as six months after joining our Hays Travel family, and we give our people the opportunity to learn, develop and progress in their work. We encourage everyone to follow their own path, and we are grateful that so many decide to stay with us for the long haul - which we credit to our company culture, values and advancement opportunities.”
A second event celebrating long-serving colleagues based in the South will follow later this month.
North East care and leisure group Malhotra Group has picked Gosforth-based St Oswald’s Hospice to be its 2025 charity partner. The group, which owns bars, hotels and restaurants across the North East along its residential care provider Prestwick Care will carry out a variety of staff and customer focussed fundraising initiatives throughout the year.
For more than 35 years, St Oswald’s Hospice has provided care for people of all ages who are living with a progressive, life-limiting condition and for their families and carers.
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Chief operating officer Atul Malhotra said: “Since 2016 we have supported a variety of charities – from MIND and Dementia Matters to Newcastle West End Foodbank and cancer support charity, Daft as a Brush. All do fantastic work, with care, service and kindness – and the same can most certainly be said of our new charity partner. St Oswald’s Hospice’s exceptional team supports children, adults and families at the most difficult of times – with expertise, gentleness and with genuine human warmth.
“They are quite simply amazing and we at Malhotra Group will do all we can over the coming year to raise as much money for them - and awareness of them - as we can.”
Steph Edusei, chief executive at St Oswald’s Hospice, said: “This partnership means such a lot to us as a charity. I know that, together, we can make a real difference to people’s lives.”
Newcastle Building Society has signed up to the UN Principles for Responsible Banking, a single framework for a sustainable banking industry developed through a collaboration between banks and building societies worldwide. The framework is a United Nations Environment Programme Finance Initiative (UNEP FI) and sees signatories identify and measure the environmental and social impact resulting from their business activities, set and implement targets where they have the most significant impact, and regularly report publicly on their progress.
Signatories to the Principles share best practice and work together on practical guidance and pioneering tools which benefit the entire industry and accelerate the changes necessary to achieve shared prosperity for both current and future generations.
Andrew Haigh, Newcastle Building Society CEO said: “We are proud to commit to the UNEP FI Principles for Responsible Banking, and by doing so, join the world’s largest global banking community focused on sustainable finance. In an ever-changing world we recognise our responsibility to build the long-term economic, social and environmental value for our communities.
“As a member-owned organisation, we’re committed to the people and places that make up our communities, and the things that matter to them. Being a signatory to the Principles and joining UNEP FI is an explicit commitment from us to being ambitious in our sustainability strategies and decision-making to create positive change for our communities. And as the Society continues to grow and innovate, it will help us seize opportunities arising from the transition to a more sustainable society.”
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Newcastle Quayside hotel Innside Newcastle, part of Meliá Hotels International, has announced a year-long art partnership with the Baltic Centre for Contemporary Art. The partnership will see Baltic transform the Innside Newcastle gallery space into a vibrant hub for contemporary creativity, offering guests and visitors the opportunity to experience world-class art in a new setting.
The link-up starts on April 1, when the gallery space will showcase a selection of contemporary artworks curated by Baltic featured artist Jimmy Turrell until the end of June. Mr Turrell is an acclaimed Newcastle-born artist and video director known for his hybrid techniques combining collage, printmaking, and photography. His work has been exhibited internationally in Tokyo, Paris, Berlin, and London, and he has collaborated with major music icons including Elvis, The Chemical Brothers, and Aretha Franklin.
Sara Ley, head of trading at Baltic, said: “We are excited that Baltic is forging a partnership with Innside Newcastle who share our strong commitment to supporting and showcasing local artists. We look forward to presenting work from the great creative talent we have within the city on the other side of the quayside. The presentations will rotate throughout the year and people will be able to purchase the work and bring art into their homes.”
Katie Cunningham, general manager of Innside Newcastle, said: “At Innside we are committed to showing our guests everything that’s great about Newcastle, from championing local businesses to connecting with the city’s thriving creative communities. We are delighted to announce our new partnership with Baltic and to give Innside guests a taste of the fantastic art work displayed across the River Tyne.”