HBAA donates £20,000 to Meeting Needs at The Meetings Show

HBAA presented Meeting Needs with a cheque for £20,000 at The Meetings Show last week as a result of the dedicated fundraising effort by HBAA members during 2015.

Jacqui Kavanagh, HBAA Board Member and CEO of Trinity Event Solutions says: “On behalf of the HBAA I am just so thrilled to be passing on this fantastic cheque for £20,000, which represents 12 months of collaborative fundraising activities by our agent and venue members, and will result in positive impacts for the unique projects supported by Meeting Needs.’’

Meeting Needs was founded by leading figures in the UK conference and events industry and aims to raise funds for worthy causes relevant to the events industry. Without additional funding, these causes may not have the resources to raise sufficient funds to support their needs. Meeting Needs provides financial support to those who are unable to access public funding, supporting the various cases through fund-raising initiatives and activities.

Jennifer Jenkins, Executive Committee Member for Meeting Needs says: “Whilst some of the funds will be used to support on-going projects, we will also be ring fencing some of the monies raised by HBAA to help those returning to the industry after time out. We hope this activity might prompt a more concerted effort to promote ‘returnships’ in our industry.”

Meeting Needs supports projects both within the UK and internationally. Recently they have funded operations to correct facial disfigurements of 11 children at a mission set up by Project Harar Ethiopia. The total cost to change the lives of these 11 children was just £3000. Closer to home, Meeting Needs has been working with Frontline, a UK-based charity providing support to people with learning difficulties.

Kavnagh concludes: “Meeting Needs is a superb charity that our industry can be very proud of. They bring about meaningful support, aid and help to individuals that otherwise would go without, making real change for many unfortunate people.”