Sporting stadia, event venue and visitor attraction caterer, The Lindley Group, has become one of the first contract caterers to join the Sustainable Restaurant Association (SRA) as a corporate member.
The group says signing up to become an SRA member reinforces its commitment to evolving sustainable working practices, and it also marks a new era in the development of the SRA as the organisation launches a designated sustainability model specifically developed for the contract catering sector.
Established in 2010 initially to assist restaurants in becoming more sustainable and helping diners make more sustainable choices when dining out, the SRA assesses members in three key categories: Sourcing, Environment and Society, and provides a verified three-star Sustainability Rating system based on criteria covering 14 defined areas.
The Lindley Group, through its two divisions Lindley Venue Catering and Lindley Heritage, provides hospitality, catering and events services at 52 venues across the UK.
Earlier this year Anna Standen, the former GM of Elior UK based at the Stonehenge Café at Stonehenge Monument and a BSc Environmental Studies student, joined the caterer as Corporate and Social Responsibility Manager with the remit of developing a holistic approach to environmental, community, health and wellbeing policies across all aspects of the business.
With the support and advice provided by the SRA, The Lindley Group is preparing for ISO 14001 Environmental Management System accreditation.
Jonathan Davies, The Lindley Group’s Sales and Marketing Director, says: “We have also introduced a number of initiatives such as packaging up used coffee grounds at some sites to give away to customers to use as garden fertilizer, and we support local communities in a number of different ways.
In related news, the group is celebrating a three-year contract to provide catering services for the public and staff at the new Warner Bros. Studio Tour London – The Making of Harry Potter, which opened at the end of March.
The new attraction is located at Warner Bros. Studios at Leavesden where the Harry Potter film series was created and has been made over a 10 year period.
The catering facilities are open to visitors seven days a week and the high levels of visitor numbers have generated strong sales since opening.
Established in 1968 and based in Stoke-on-Trent, The Lindley Group is an independent British catering company. It has a turnover of £50m and employs 440 full-time and 4,000 part-time employees.
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