Holiday firm's helpful donation

A SOUTH Devon holiday company has been particularly helpful to the RNLI.

Helpful Holidays, the Chagford-based self-catering specialists, raised £2,616 for the RNLI in 2008 as their charity of choice for the year.

Holidaymakers were invited to make an optional donation when booking which raised a total of £1,308. This was matched by Helpful Holidays.

For 2009 the agency is supporting Farms for City Children and has so far raised £381 from holidaymakers, which amounts to £762 with their matched funding.

Founded in 1976, this charity aims to enrich the lives of children from urban areas by giving them the opportunity to spend a week working together on a real farm in the heart of the countryside. The suggested donation is £5 per booking.

Moray Bowater, general manager at Helpful Holidays, pictured left, said: "We are delighted by the generosity of our holidaymakers in 2008. The RNLI is always very well supported. We're also delighted with donations so far this year despite these current challenging times."

Helpful Holidays is also splitting its VAT saving between Farms for City Children, the RNLI, Marine Conservation Society and Devon Air Ambulance.

The reduction in VAT means the agency will save around 50p for every £100 holidaymakers spend with them. This will add up to many thousands of pounds over a year.

Helpful Holidays features more than 600 places to stay from Devon and Cornwall to Hampshire.