News 2004
Virgin Mobile raises funds for BBC Children In Need
18/11/2004
18.11.04: On 19th November Virgin Mobile staff will be spending their spare time in the company of a small yellow teddy bear with an eye patch, all in aid of a good cause! The team at Virgin Mobile have jumped at the chance to work through the night for the BBC Children in Need Appeal, the 25th anniversary of the appeal’s history, and attempt to repeat the huge success of last year. Virgin Mobile’s head office, based in Trowbridge in Wiltshire, will act as a call centre for the appeal, where staff will accept pledges and donations to the appeal, which is dedicated to improving the lives of young people in Britain.
Virgin Mobile staff have come out in force to support the appeal, with more than 150 members of staff, along with their family and friends, queuing up to man the phones from 7pm-2am on Children in Need night. Local celebrities from the worlds of television and sport have pledged their attendance, including members of the local Bath Rugby team, which is sponsored by Virgin Mobile. BBC Radio Wiltshire will be broadcasting live from the call centre, where activities will include karaoke, bingo and pop quizzes to keep spirits high into the night. And in a further boost to the workers’ energy levels McDonald’s will be providing them all with meals, and Virgin Cola will be supplying drinks for those doing the thirsty work of answering phones.
This is Virgin Mobile’s second year working with Children in Need. In 2003 the call centre took approximately 375,000 calls, which raised more than half a million pounds’ worth of pledges on the night – one of the greatest totals of any call centre. In 2003 the appeal went on to raise £30 million, bringing the total for the 25 years of the appeal to a staggering £350 million raised.
Lisa Cogdell-Brown, community liaison officer at Virgin Mobile, said: “Virgin Mobile’s staff are always keen to support a good cause, and following on from last year's huge success on behalf of Children in Need they jumped at the chance to take calls again. This year we have vowed to try to raise even more money on the night, and have even more fun while we’re doing it!"
Notes to Editors:
For further information please contact:
Virgin Mobile | |
| Virgin Mobile Press Office: | 0845 600 6272 or press.office@virginmobile.com |
| Alison Bonny: | 07802 430276 or alison.bonny@virginmobile.com |
| Joanne Baker: | 07941 233300 or joanne.baker@virginmobile.com |
About Virgin Mobile:
Virgin Mobile Holdings (UK) plc, the UK's largest mobile virtual network operator, is majority owned by Sir Richard Branson's Virgin Group and uses T-Mobile's network. Since its launch in November 1999, Virgin Mobile has attracted more than 4.6 million customers.
In the UK, Virgin Mobile phones are available direct on 0845 6000 600; on the web at www.virginmobile.com or on the High Street at approximately 5,000 outlets including Virgin Mobile Specialist Stores, Virgin Megastores, Sainsbury, Tesco, Safeway, Asda, John Lewis, Littlewoods, Argos, The Link, Dixons, Carphone Warehouse, Curry's, Comet, Phones 4 U, TOMO, Woolworths, Toys R Us and Rymans.
Virgin Mobile employs approximately 1,400 staff at three sites, Trowbridge, London and Daventry, and has an outsourced customer service centre operated by approximately 200 staff in Middlesbrough. It has been voted one of the top 50 places to work in Britain for two years running in an annual Financial Times survey.
Virgin Mobile's customers are considered the most satisfied in the pre-pay sector according to a recent UK survey by market researchers JD Power and Associates.
