Sporting Lunch raises record amount for GroceryAid

As the annual Sporting Lunch made a return for GroceryAid, the event has raised over £633,00 on the day.

Held at Grosvenor House, London on 12 November 2021, the event has seen over 1,200 colleagues from 198 companies raising the record amount through tickets sales, generous donations and 24 sponsors.

Hosts Natalie Pinkham and Mike Tindall led the day which included interviews with football legend Sir Geoff Hurst, Helen Glover, Kate Richardson-Walsh and a final Q&A panel with James Haskell and Sir Alistair Cook.

The event also welcomed a fantastic line-up of sporting talent including Baroness Tanni Grey–Thompson, Alex Dansen, Chemmy Alcott, Dion Dublin, Don Hutchison, James Cracknell, Jazmin Carlin, Kelly Smith, Lewis Moody, Monty Panesar, Robbie Savage, Ryan Sidebottom and Steve Davis.

At the lunch, Charles Wilson, GroceryAid President, also introduced ‘Ricky’s Story’: a film depicting the positive impact that GroceryAid support had on his life.

“We are delighted to have raised such a phenomenal amount of money and grateful for the support of companies throughout the industry,” said Steve Barnes, GroceryAid chief executive.

“Demand for our services is accelerating rapidly. In the last six months, we experienced a 120% increase in applications for financial support and a 52% increase in calls to our helpline, compared to the whole of last year.”

Next year’s Sporting Lunch will take place on 11 November 2022.