Central England Co-op donates £12k to boost eight community projects in the West Midlands

Posted by rob smyth | Published: 06/07/2018


Eight projects in the West Midlands are celebrating after sharing £11,800 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.

Friends of Hurst Green Park, in Halesowen, received £2,500 to pay for a vital new piece of equipment to allow toddlers to use a local play area.

Carol Hackett, Chair of Friends of Hurst Green Park, said: “Having an organisation such as Central England Co-operative take an interest in our project and believe it to be worthy of the offer of a grant is an enormous compliment.”

West Midlands Powerchair Regional League will use over £2,000 to buy specialist testing equipment from America to ensure that everyone is playing within the rules before they head into competition.

David Lewis, from the league, said: “We are delighted by this news and the funding we have received. It will enable us to buy some much needed equipment that will help young people with a physical disability to develop and achieve their full potential playing powerchair football.” 

Project Aspie, based in Erdington, has been handed £650 for a new laptop and projector to help people with autism and Asperger’s syndrome live healthy and independent lives in the community.

Vital new electric heaters will be installed at Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic church, in Old Hill, following a £2,000 donation.

A total of £1,100 has been handed to Key to Success Smethwick to buy new equipment to support holiday camps and tuition for disadvantaged children.

Birmingham Rathbone Society and Eastside Amateur Boxing Club will use donations to buy new sports equipment.

Birmingham Friends of the Earth will use £1,200 to install a new kitchen and continue to support a range of different community initiatives.

Stirchley Food Store Manager Jim Cunningham 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/

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

 

Notes to editors

 

Picture caption: Members of groups in the West Midlands 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