Central England Co-op donates £12.5k to boost nine charity and community projects in Leicestershire
Posted by rob smyth | Published: 06/07/2018
Nine projects in Leicestershire are celebrating after sharing £12,500 in the latest payout from Central England Co-operative’s Community Dividend Fund.
A wide range of groups, organisations and charities were handed grants, with a total of £43,000 handed out to 40 good causes across 16 counties.
Lutterworth Garage Barn has been handed over £2,000 to support a project called ‘seed to plate’, which aims to teach children from challenging backgrounds or with learning difficulties and their families about how to grow fruit and veg and how to cook it healthily.
Dina Hooton, from the project, said: “Our not-for-profit business is delighted with the support from Central England Co-op to enable us to purchase a poly tunnel which will be used for our much needed Seed to Plate project, working with local families to teach them how to harvest fresh fruit and veg, cook healthy meals together, with the help of a local professional chef, and unite them as a family.”
Patients in the Clarendon Ward at Leicester Hospital will soon be able to recuperate while enjoying their favourite television show or radio programme after the hospital was handed £2,000 to pay for new TVs and radios.
Melton Community Allotment will use over £2,000 to help support an effort to make the site more accessible to wheelchair users.
Soft Touch Arts has been handed £3,000 to transform a second-hand van into a vehicle that will allow the group to deliver creative activities to disadvantaged children, young people and families in the area.
Christina Wigmore, Director of Soft Touch Arts, said: “Our work targets young people and families in areas where there are limited opportunities to get involved in community activities that benefit wellbeing and provide opportunities for the community to come together.”
Melton Learning Hub will use £870 to buy a range of new equipment to help support disadvantaged youngsters aged 13 to 19 taking part in a variety of vocational subjects such as horticulture.
A café for people who are socially isolated and/or recently bereaved has been handed £1,170 to help pay for a brand new kitchen.
The group, which operates out of St James Church Hall, Newbold Verdon, supports around 70 people across the community and will use its new kitchen to help provide food and drink including breakfasts and lunches.
Lutterworth Phoenix Netball Club has been handed £650 and Leicestershire Under 18 County Bowls Team, based in Barwell, £500 to pay for new kits and jackets. 2nd Quorn Scouts will use £300 to pay for new tents.
Whetstone Food Store manager Sarah Goode said: “We are delighted that these great projects and good causes have been handed a grant for the fantastic work they do in the community.
“Community Dividend Fund grants like this showcase how being a member and continuing to support Central England Co-op helps us as a Society continue to invest and fund vital projects in the local area.”
Grants of between £100 and £5,000 are handed out every three months to a wide range of applicants.
The fund guarantees that at least one per cent of the Society’s trading profit is reinvested in local communities in a bid to help projects to thrive across its trading area of 16 counties from the Midlands to the east coast.
People can apply for funding by visiting https://communities.centralengland.coop/
Notes to editors
Picture caption: Members of groups in Leicestershire celebrated being handed their grant from the Central England Co-operative Community Dividend Fund.
About Central England Co-operative
Central England Co-operative is one of the largest independent retail co-operative societies in the UK.
It is a modern, forward-looking organisation employing over 8,000 staff, with the Society’s principal areas of activity being food, funeral services, travel shops, and property investment.
Central England Co-operative has over 400 trading outlets across 16 counties including; West Midlands, Warwickshire, Worcestershire, Staffordshire, Derbyshire, Leicestershire, Rutland, Nottinghamshire, Northamptonshire, Lincolnshire, West Yorkshire, South Yorkshire, Suffolk, Norfolk, Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire. The Society has an ambitious food store development programme for 2018.
Central England Co-operative is proud of its reputation for ethical business practices and corporate responsibility. It is a member of Business in the Community, the membership organisation that stands for responsible business, and has also won many business awards for excellence. The Society supports a number of charities including Dementia UK and invests a percentage of its trading profit into local communities.
Becoming a member of Central England Co-operative offers a whole host of benefits ranging from collecting points every time you spend in store to earn a share of the profits, access to members activities and community initiatives including the Community Dividend Fund, which hands out grants of up to £5,000 to charities and good causes across the Society’s trading estate.
Find out how to become a Central England Co-operative member by calling 0800 0501 601, emailing members@centralengland.coop or visiting https://www.members.coop
For more information visit www.centralengland.coop, follow Central England Co-operative on Twitter: @mycoopfood, and on Facebook: facebook.com/centralenglandcooperative
Rob Smyth / Heather Clapton at Central England Co-operative on 01543 414140
Email –publicrelations@centralengland.coop