The Burnt Chef Project is calling on the hospitality industry to take collective responsibility for protecting the mental health support available to its people through its new fundraising campaign, Hold The Line.
The rolling campaign brings together hospitality businesses, professionals, suppliers and the wider public to help ensure that whenever somebody reaches out for help, a real person is there to answer.
Hold The Line has an initial fundraising target of £200,000 to help sustain The Burnt Chef Project’s free, confidential mental health support during the first 12 months of the campaign.
Available 24 hours a day, the service can connect hospitality professionals with therapy and counselling, mental health coaching, immediate emotional support and signposting, multilingual assistance and practical wellbeing guidance. There is no waiting list, no referral and no cost to the person asking for help.
The Burnt Chef Project has already supported more than 9,500 people, with its work reaching 184 countries. However, with four in five hospitality professionals reporting that they have experienced at least one mental health issue during their career, the organisation says protecting access to support must become a shared priority for the industry.
Kris Hall, Founder of The Burnt Chef Project, said: “For years, we have encouraged people across hospitality to speak up and ask for help. Now we need to make sure the support is there when they do. As an industry, we cannot keep saying that people are our greatest asset without helping to protect the services they rely on when things become too much.
“Hold The Line gives everybody a practical way to play their part. That could be an individual giving £3 a month, a business making an annual pledge or a supplier encouraging its network to get involved. Collectively, those contributions help ensure there is a real person ready to answer when somebody says, ‘I’m not okay.’
“Our initial target is £200,000 to support the first 12 months of the campaign. It is ambitious, but if the industry gets behind it, it is absolutely achievable.”
The importance of having support available at the point it is needed is reflected in feedback from those who have already used the service.
One hospitality professional said: “I’ve used the text service recently and can’t tell you how much it helped me through the day, let alone the shift I was on.”
Maidaid has joined Hold The Line as its Headline Partner, making a significant commitment to the campaign and helping The Burnt Chef Project encourage further support from across the hospitality supply chain.
Jag Thandi, CCO at Maidaid, said: “We supply businesses that depend every day on the skill, resilience and commitment of hospitality teams. Supporting their mental health should be part of how our industry looks after its people. We chose to become the Headline Partner of Hold The Line because it turns good intentions into practical action. It helps protect a service people can use now, at no cost and without having to wait.
“We are proud to stand alongside The Burnt Chef Project and hope our commitment encourages more businesses from across hospitality and its supply chain to step forward and consider the part they can play.”
Individuals can join Hold The Line through a regular monthly donation from £3 or make a one off contribution. A donation of £140 can help one person access six therapy sessions.
Businesses can become annual Hold The Line Partners by pledging £250, £500, £1,000 or £2,500 a year. Larger partnerships and global collaborations are also available. Alongside Headline Partner Maidaid Halcyon, businesses already supporting the campaign include Talent Hive and Butcombe Brewing Co and Culinary Association of Wales.
Although created for hospitality, Hold The Line is open to everyone. Customers, communities, partners and organisations outside the industry can all contribute to protecting the people who welcome, serve and create experiences for others every day.
To donate, become a Hold The Line Partner or find out more, visit: www.theburntchefproject.com/holdtheline
