Welcome Break 2025: A Year of Growth, Innovation, and Community Impact
As we close out 2025, it’s the perfect time to reflect on a fantastic year for Welcome Break. From exciting new openings and brand remodels to impactful campaigns and charitable initiatives, this year has showcased our commitment to innovation, customer experience, and community engagement.
The year got off to a flying start with the opening of our Rotherham site, marking Welcome Break’s 60th service area in the UK. Rotherham offers state of the art facilities, and a range of your favourite brands, as well as a kids’ soft play and super-fast EV charging. January continued to set the tone with the opening of Chick-fil-A in Lisburn South and the first of the Burger King remodels taking place at Birchanger.
February continued the momentum with Keele North the first in line for a Subway refresh, in a year that saw the brand complete several refurbishments across the business. The season of love also brought our heartfelt Share the Love campaign to sites across the country, bringing positivity and connection to our customers.
Moving into Spring, the site investments continued at a pace as we welcomed two brand new Taco Bell units to Oxford and Corley. The annual Hungry Games also took place in which Welcome Break battled Applegreen Ireland to see who would take home the crown. With weeks of heats and finals, both teams brought the best of the best to compete across a range of challenges. From best Whopper to perfect latte art, the competition was hotly contested, with Welcome Break coming out victorious!
There was a flurry of refurbishments into April, as well as the opening of Chopstix at Keele South. Our sites sprung into action with our Easter egg scavenger hunt, allowing customers to find the different eggs around site. The Welcome Break Charitable Fund, along with the fantastic work of our team and customers, collected and donated Easter eggs to a range of community charities.
Taco Bell continued to expand within Welcome Break, with two new stores opening at Keele and Newport Pagnell in May. Site investment also focused on HGV facilities with new outdoor gyms installed, showers blocks and improved lighting and security measures put in place. Another key area for the business was ensuring the growth of EV charging offered across our sites, with increased chargers and high-speed options.
The Welcome Break Charitable Fund awarded £156,000 in community grants in July. The initiative is dedicated to supporting local communities by investing in projects that create a genuine impact in the areas where our team members live and work. This is further supported by the volunteering hours our team members put in throughout the year to give back to their communities. From care package deliveries and donations to volunteering days and fundraising events, Welcome Break are proud to support these fantastic causes.
Welcome Break Hickling opened in July, marking the second new site in 2025. From newest to oldest, August was a cause for celebration, with our first site, Newport Pagnell, turning 60. We celebrated in style with a three-day party, filled with prizes, activities, and music, and topped off with a car-sized cake!
That wasn’t all for our summer fun! In August, we introduced our partnership with Universal and the launch of The Bad Guys 2. There were kids’ activities, photo opportunities and one lucky winner even won a family holiday to Milan, packed full of adventure.
The last quarter of the year brought some incredible charitable efforts. September marked Going Green for Macmillan Cancer Support, in which all funds raised through the Welcome Break Charitable Fund went to help those living or effected by cancer. In October, we proudly reaffirmed our commitment to inclusivity through signing the Accessibility Pledge alongside Transport Focus. This marks a significant step forward in supporting disabled drivers and passengers whilst on the roads.
In November, our fundraising efforts focused on Children in Need, raising over £75,000 in the process. These funds go directly towards helping make life a little lighter for those in need across the UK. Raising funds is not the only way we’ve supported charities this year. December saw the commercial team pack and deliver a record 504 Macmillan care packages across several hospitals and hospices, bringing smiles to those going through cancer treatment.
To round off the year, Welcome Break’s across the country have got in the festive spirit! Customers have been hanging their Christmas wishes on our trees and even been able to pick up a carrot from our Reindeer Recharging Stations to take home for Rudolph. Our sites are still open 24/7 across Christmas and New Year for all your road trip needs.
Looking back, 2025 was a year defined by progress, partnerships, and purpose. None of this would have been possible without the dedication of our teams and the loyalty of our customers. As we look ahead to 2026, we remain committed to delivering exceptional experiences and continuing to make a positive impact in everything we do.