Cash raised in aftermath of Eastbourne hotel fire is handed over to Claremont staff

Eastbourne resident Alison Elmes set up the Justgiving fundraising page after fire destroyed the seafront hotel on Friday November 22.

It raised £3,638 in just five weeks with many local people donating to the fund as well as visitors who had stayed at the hotel in the past and also some former members of staff.

This week the money was transferred into a bank account and hotel manager David Bartlett is making sure all the staff will receive approximately £120 each.

Alison said, “My aim was to help staff that had perhaps been affected by the fire.

“The former Liberal Democrat MP Stephen Lloyd was brilliant in helping me work out what do to with the money and put me in touch with Ann Gillard at the People Matter Trust, as well as the hotel manager Mr Bartlett.

“We decided to wait until the end of January when we thought it would be easy to identify any staff who were still financially affected as they’d all been paid up until the end of December.

“But in the event, we settled on the idea that we should share it between all the staff equally, which means they will receive approximately £120 each.

“People were very generous and there was one grateful donation from the family of an 89-year-old gentleman who was staying at the hotel at the time, one from Aston House Care Home in Lewes Road and a sizeable amount from a sister hotel, the Barrowfield in Newquay.

“I would like people to know it’s been passed on and thank Stephen Lloyd for his altruistic assistance during the election campaign and on the eve of the General Election.”

Dirk Bossmann from Hamburg was one of those who donated money,

He said, “I cannot thank Ali Elmes enough for what she is doing to help the brilliant staff.

“It saddens me deeply. Not only have I stayed next door in June, but I have once worked in a not dissimilar hotel in another seaside town on the south coast.

“All my best to everybody involved, the employees, the firefighters, the owners and the very lovely Eastbourne itself.

“Eastbourne may be at risk of losing a big chunk of her historic and beautiful seafront again – just after the big loss to the fire on the pier.”