25 Jul Travelodge launches its new sustainability plan – ‘Better Future’
Today, Travelodge, one of the UK’s largest hotel chains which operates almost 600 hotels across Ireland, Spain and the UK including 80 properties in the capital, officially launches its new sustainability plan – Better Future.
Travelodge has always placed a strong emphasis on safety and security, the environment and its social responsibilities, and it recognises that there is more it can do as a responsible business and therefore has created a new comprehensive Better Future plan.
The plan plays a critical part in shaping the future of Travelodge and has been fully integrated with the group’s business strategy and purpose – to provide affordable travel for everyone. It outlines the group’s sustainability agenda with stretching KPI’s that will help create a sustainable business with long term profitable growth and the goal to define the route to becoming a net-zero hotel operator and how this can be aligned to Science Based Targets (SBTI).
The vision to create a Better Future for Travelodge customers, colleagues and the planet is underpinned by three core pillars: Inclusive, Caring and Conscious.
Detailed below are Travelodge’s primary focuses under each pillar.
Inclusive: Ensuring Travelodge is accessible, inclusive and affordable to its colleagues and customers.
· Diversity & inclusion: Everyone should feel welcome and part of the Travelodge team
· Social mobility: Allow colleagues to learn more, earn more and belong
Caring: Creating a safe and healthy environment for colleagues and customers, and ensuring their wellbeing.
· Wellbeing: Improve the physical, emotional, financial and work wellbeing of colleagues
· Charity: Support its charity partners which are currently: Pennies and the British Heart Foundation
Conscious: Being actively conscious of the waste we produce, the energy and resources we consume and our carbon emissions.
· Net zero: Reduce its energy consumption through energy efficiency projects. Migrate its residual supply to green sources and / or find other ways to offset any remainder
· New builds and refurbishment programme: Build new hotels and refurbish our existing hotels with sustainability as a key consideration
To help create its Better Future plan, Travelodge appointed Simply Sustainable, an award-winning global management consulting specialist in ESG and sustainable business.
During the last 12 months, the group also consulted a wide range of stakeholders, which included landlords, investors, local authorities, developers, key suppliers and charity partners. Travelodge also surveyed over 40,000 of its business and leisure customers and their team of over 10,000 colleagues. This vital feedback helped the group to ensure that every aspect of their plan is rooted in the most important sustainability priorities of its stakeholders.
To support the implementation of the Travelodge Better Future plan, the group has put into place a governance model with a steering committee to ensure effective monitoring and implementation of the plan. In addition, the group will also provide an annual Sustainability Report.
