Derby good cause handed thousands of items from Central England Co-op to help launch community shop

Posted by rob smyth | Published: 27/11/2020


Thousands of items removed from a Central England Co-op store as part of a £3 million revamp have been donated to support a vital good cause and its work helping those in need across Derby.

Everything from shelving and tables to fridges, freezes and even an entire supermarket kiosk have been delivered to Community Action Derby as part of a long-standing partnership between the good cause and the retailer.

The items will be used by the Derby Food 4 Thought Alliance, which is part of Community Action Derby, to set up its first ever community shop, which will allow people in need or at risk of food poverty a way of receiving the help they need.

The major donation has been made possible after the retailer’s Boley Park Food Store, in Lichfield, was given a major overhaul and turned into a flagship concept store.

Tanya Noon, Member and Community Relations Officer, said: “We are proud of the fact that making a difference for our local communities sits at the heart of every decision we make as a Society.

“After creating a stunning new store in Lichfield, we reached out to groups we work with on a regular basis to see if the previous shop fittings would be of any use.

“We were delighted that Community Action Derby and its Derby Food 4 Thought Alliance jumped at the chance of receiving thousands of items to allow them to create their first ever community shop.

“Not only does this mean these items do not get thrown away, most importantly it means that we can help one of our long-term partners continue to make an amazing difference to people who need a little extra support in Derby.”

A total of 100 cages were filled with all the items and delivered via the retailer’s distribution network to Derby earlier this week.

Paul Brookhouse, Specialist Project Co-ordinator at Derby Food 4 Thought Alliance, said: “It’s been great to be able to make use and accept the resources offered to help us in preparation for setting up our first community shops. 

“Once again Central England Co-op is an integral partner in helping the us support those most at need in our city and enable long term solutions.”

 

 Notes to editors

About Central England Co-operative

 

Central England Co-operative is one of the largest independent retail co-operative societies in the UK with interests in food, funeral, floral and property investment.

 

Co-operatives have always been there for their communities; they were formed to protect them and help them flourish. 

 

Our 7,550 colleagues who serve Members and customers work hard to ensure that co-operative values, principles and spirit flow through everything we do to help support and improve our local communities.

 

Owned by hundreds of thousands of Members, we have 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. 

 

We are proud of our reputation for ethical business practices and corporate responsibility.

 

We invest a percentage of our trading profit into local communities through our Community Dividend Fund scheme, have donated over £1.3 million to our corporate charity partner Dementia UK and also operate a pioneering food redistribution partnership with FareShare Midlands so unsold food goes to those in need.

 

Visit www.centralengland.coop for more information or follow us on Facebook or Twitter using @mycoopfood

 

Press office contacts: Rob Smyth and James Brindle

 

Phone - 01543 421390

 

Email - publicrelations@centralengland.coop