31/07/2012

Queensland’s peak motoring organisation has won a prestigious Australian Business Award for its contribution to the community as a result of two natural disaster recovery initiatives, the RACQ Foundation and the Community Response Team.

The RACQ took top honours in the Community Contribution category, winning the award from 116 entries nation-wide. The award recognises organisations which implement policies or projects that positively impact the community and generate outcomes that provide long term benefit.

RACQ Group Chief Executive Officer Ian Gillespie said today the RACQ had been recognised specifically for its RACQ Foundation and Community Response Team (CRT), established in the wake of the floods and cyclones in late 2010 and early 2011.

The two RACQ initiatives built on the organisation’s 107-year tradition of making a real contribution to the Queensland community.

"The RACQ Foundation was established with initial funding of $8 million to help community-based groups get up and running again after natural disasters," Mr Gillespie said.

"The Foundation has already allocated more than $6 million to over 100 community groups.

"Along with financial assistance, RACQ has been able to offer practical assistance through the CRT, which is a group of trained RACQ volunteers who are on standby to leave their regular roles to help communities in the immediate aftermath of natural disasters."

Mr Gillespie said the CRT, which works under the direction of Emergency Management Queensland, had proven its worth earlier this year, covering about 2,500 kilometres, and working about 12 hours a day helping flooded families in the Mitchell and St George areas.

"Everyone at RACQ is proud that Queensland’s largest club has been recognised for its community service helping not just our 1.2 million members but also their friends, families and broader communities," Mr Gillespie said.

The Australian Business Awards is a comprehensive awards program was established in 2005. It engages with leading corporate, government and non-profit organisations across key industry segments, including financial, manufacturing, professional services, energy, telecommunications, construction, transport, healthcare, education, food services and retail.