Next May I'll be cycling 331km across the beautiful mountainous terrain of Taiwan, from Hsinchu to Taipei, as part of the Hospitality Rides challenge raising funds for two great causes, The Licensed Trade Charity and Only a Pavement Away.

Both of these charities work tirelessly to provide support, assistance, and opportunities to vulnerable individuals within the hospitality industry, including those facing poverty, homelessness, and other challenges.

ONLY A PAVEMENT AWAY is a charity founded by representatives from the hospitality industry who believe that everyone deserves the chance to find and forge a career. Our aim is to act as an effective conduit between forward-thinking hospitality employers and charities working with people facing homelessness, prison leavers and veterans who struggling to get into work, overcome hurdles by finding jobs within the hospitality, pub and restaurant industry. Our industry is an exciting one, built on people.

THE LICENSED TRADE CHARITY, founded in 1793, supports hundreds of people within the trade facing a crisis each year with practical advice, wellbeing support and financial guidance.

Calls to its crisis hotline jumped by 43% last year. It is estimated that around 250,000 people working in the licensed hospitality sector are in need of help at any one time, and we’re here to support as many as possible.

I shan't even pretend that the idea of cycling in Taiwan isn't extremely exciting (mostly because of the food, though obviously the landscape looks beautiful too and I've really been missing that crushing humidity since coming back from the US), but I'm also motivated by the hopelessness I see on a few people's faces at the local food bank. People genuinely struggling to find work, who haven't got the right CV, who just need a lucky break to get them back on track. With an industry crying out for staff, I feel very strongly that we should be doing more to help and support people like this into long-term employment.

I'd be really grateful for any donations, however small!