Formula 1 star Lewis Hamilton visits Abbey in
London
Lewis Hamilton, the Vodafone McLaren Mercedes driver and Formula 1 star, visited Abbey staff, children from Great Ormond Street Hospital, Santander Shareholder department competition winners and the broadcast media at Abbey's main offices in London.
Just a week before the Santander British Grand Prix at Silverstone was due to take place, Formula 1 ace, Lewis Hamilton, took time out of his busy schedule to pay a visit to Abbey’s main office building. Lewis, who currently features in Abbey’s current account television and branch campaign, took the time to meet a wide range of people, including many Abbey staff.
Great Ormond Street Hospital children
Abbey's charity of the year for 2008 is Great Ormond Street Hospital and, as part of this special relationship, six children who are being treated at the London hospital were invited to meet Lewis during his visit. They spent time with him racing on a 17-foot Scalextric model of the Silverstone track, built especially for Abbey. The children, along with their siblings, were given Vodafone McLaren Mercedes t-shirts, caps and racing suits as well as signed photos of Lewis, and the racing driver chatted to the patients and their families before the group moved on to a celebratory tea party.
Abbey’s head of Corporate Social Responsibility, Sharon Squire, was responsible for this element of the day. She said: “The children from Great Ormond Street Hospital are all undergoing difficult treatment and for many this was a rare few hours away from the hospital. They were all huge Formula 1 fans so meeting Lewis was a real treat for them and their families and it was great that we were able to incorporate such a moving element into his visit".
Shareholder department competition winners
Young sports journalists had a chance to see Lewis Hamilton in action with the media after winning a competition run by Santander ’s Shareholder department. The winners, aged between 11 and 18, witnessed Lewis taking part in a TV interview and then had a chance to ask him questions during a Q&A session.
Staff Q&A session
Thanks to line managers nominating their best performers, 45 members of staff from all over the UK took part in a Q&A session in the boardroom. The staff, who were joined by Santander Shareholder department competition winners, were given the chance to ask Lewis questions. These included what career Lewis Hamilton would have chosen had he not been a F1™ driver and if he was confident about winning the Santander British Grand Prix.
Abbey Executive Director, Nathan Bostock, warmly welcomed the guests to Abbey’s boardroom. He talked about the importance of Santander ’s sponsorship of the British Grand Prix and said: “Santander is proud to be a Corporate Partner of the Vodafone McLaren Mercedes team this year. It’s been an exciting season so far and one that has helped to bring the Santander name into two billion homes across the world”.
“Formula 1 has also been a great choice for us here at Abbey. In the UK, we have a Lewis Hamilton in every branch. And who better to launch our market-leading current account than a national icon”.
The session ended with a group photo taken with Lewis.
Broadcast media
A selection of the country’s best-known broadcast media also had a chance to speak to Lewis during his visit. Lewis did interviews for some of the UK ’s major broadcasters including ITN, BBC News 24, Sky as well as Reuters. And members of the media also had the chance to beat Lewis during a race on the 17-foot Scalextric model of the Silverstone track.
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