Ascott Marks 25th Anniversary with More Than 25 Community Initiatives

CapitaLand’s wholly-owned serviced residence business unit, the Ascott Group Limited (Ascott), marks 25 successful years as the top international serviced residence owner-operator with over 25 community initiatives worldwide. These activities range from supporting the educational needs of underprivileged children to funding their medical treatment.

Turning 25 this year, Ascott pioneered the serviced residence concept with one property each in Singapore (The Ascott Singapore) and France (Citadines La Défense) in 1984. Ascott has since grown to be the world’s largest international serviced residence owner-operator with 190 properties and three award-winning brands – Ascott, Somerset and Citadines – in 66 cities and 22 countries.

Ascott volunteers join the children at TOUCH Young Arrows’ confidence-building camp as they learn about team-work through a game of netball.

Mr Lim Chin Beng, Chairman of The Ascott Group Limited, said:

We are commemorating Ascott’s 25th Anniversary in a meaningful way with over 25 charity initiatives worldwide to give back to the communities where we operate. In particular, we have raised funds to build a school dormitory for hill tribe children in Thailand and will support a French charity which sponsors heart surgery for children. In Singapore, our staff have donated S$25,000 to provide for the educational and developmental needs of children under Chaoyang School, Pertapis Children’s Home, and TOUCH Young Arrows, a service of TOUCH Community Services. Through these efforts, we hope to create a brighter future for the children of these beneficiaries. CapitaLand Hope Foundation has also extended a S$25,000 top-up for the three Singapore charities.

For a start, the funds have enabled Pertapis Children’s Home to upgrade its computer laboratory with new equipment and software. The donations will also go towards sponsoring computer literacy and conversational Mandarin programmes for children of Pertapis Children’s Home; supporting TOUCH Young Arrows’ services and programmes such as tuition and mentoring for needy and disadvantaged children; and funding the core programme for children of Chaoyang School which develops their literacy, numeracy and vocational skills.

The Ascott-sponsored multimedia projector at Pertapis Children’s Home enables the children to benefit from group learning.

Outside Singapore, Ascott has embarked on the following initiatives, among others, to extend assistance to various communities:

• Building a school dormitory for hill tribe children

In Thailand, Ascott, together with CapitaLand Hope Foundation, raised about S$25,000 to build a school dormitory for hill tribe children in Chiang Rai. Ascott’s staff will also help to paint the dormitory. With the facility, the children will no longer need to walk for hours from their home in remote villages to their school and will have more time for their studies.

• Raising funds to sponsor heart surgery for children

In Europe, Ascott is raising funds for Mécénat Chirurgie Cardiaque, a French non-governmental organisation (NGO) which sponsors cardiac surgery for children with severe heart malfunctions. The children come from countries where appropriate medical treatment is not available. Ascott will raise funds for the NGO through the sale of collectible Citadines teddy bears at its 41 Citadines-branded properties across major cities in Europe. Ascott will also provide accommodation for visiting doctors whom the NGO trains to treat the children.

• Helping orphans and children from broken families

Staff and guests of Ascott Kuala Lumpur and Somerset Seri Bukit Ceylon in Malaysia will make donations to Yayasan Sunbeam Home, which takes in orphans and children from broken families, and looks after their developmental and educational needs.

Ascott is the world’s largest international serviced residence owner-operator with over 18,000 operating serviced residence units in key cities of Asia Pacific, Europe and the Gulf region, as well as about 6,000 units which are under development, making a total of 25,000. The company operates three brands – Ascott, Somerset and Citadines. Its portfolio spans 66 cities in 22 countries, 14 of which are new cities in Ascott’s portfolio where its serviced residences are being developed.◊

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