LONDON, November 7, 2011 /PRNewswire/ --

Guoman & Thistle Hotels' Managing Director, Heiko Figge has been awarded the prestigious 'Chris Beaumont Special Award' at the 2011 Springboard Awards for Excellence. The awards, now in their ninth year, recognise the outstanding talent of people, organisations and initiatives in the hospitality, tourism and leisure industries.

The honour was presented in recognition of Heiko's personal commitment to the industry charity and in particular, for initiating the group's fundraising drive earlier this year which saw Guoman & Thistle Hotels contribute over £100,000 to Springboard's efforts.  

Commenting on the award, Anne Pierce, Chief Executive, The Springboard Charity, said: "We were thrilled to present Heiko with the coveted 'Chris Beaumont Special Award'. It was a fitting tribute to the outstanding, individual contribution Heiko has made since he became a non-Exec Director of Springboard just over a year ago.

"His inspirational leadership is an example to us all and he has been a hugely active, supportive and influential advocate of the Springboard Charit, not just by ensuring Guoman and Thistle Hotels' actively participate in a variety of Springboard programmes - Ambassadors, FutureChef, INSPIRE work experience, Careers Campaigns, and Summer School to name a few - but by providing wise advice and good counsel to our organisation."

On receipt of the award, Heiko commented: "I am extremely honoured to accept this award from Springboard on behalf of Guoman & Thistle Hotels. We have always been very proud of our achievements in both developing our colleagues to be the best in the business, and doing all we can to lend further support to those in hospitality - through our strong partnership with the Springboard Charity.  It's been an excellent year for the group with individual colleagues, hotels and the group all deservedly achieving awards for the work we do, and I'd like to thank everyone who has contributed along the way."

The Springboard Charity would also like to thank: Christian Armstrong, People Director, Guoman & Thistle Hotels, Anna Dowling, General Manager, The Royal Horseguards, Ben Purton, Executive Chef, The Royal Horseguards, Ian Fletcher, General Manager, The Tower, Mark Gallagher, General Manager, Thistle Glasgow, Tara Farnham and all of the Ambassadors and FutureChef Mentors at Guoman & Thistle Hotels.  

Thistle Hotels also recently collected the AA Hotel Group of the Year Award at the AA Hospitality Awards 2011 - 2012.

About Guoman & Thistle Hotels:

Guoman Hotel Management Limited operates two hotel brands within the UK market; Guoman Hotels, an exclusive collection of deluxe hotels located in central London and Thistle Hotels, a chain of quality full service hotels in the UK's major cities.

PR Contact:
Natalie Eales
Siren PR
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London
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+44(0)208-237-1210
http://www.guoman.com

SOURCE Guoman & Thistle Hotels