Eight groups across the West Midlands handed £10,410 funding boost thanks to Central England Co-op

Posted by rob smyth | Published: 08/10/2019


Food banks, schools and vital advice services were among the groups who have shared a £10,410 community grant in the West Midlands thanks to Central England Co-operative.

Eight organisations and charities shared the payout, with a total of over £44,000 handed out to 30 good causes across 16 counties.

Chuckle Productions, based in Stone, has been awarded £2,290 to pay for a range of sensory materials so severely disabled children can enjoy a range of fun activities.

Phillipa Unett, from Chuckle Productions, said: “We are absolutely delighted to have been awarded the funding from the Community Dividend Fund.

“We can now create a sensory space which will enhance all of our sessions, but this space will really impact on the children and young people, who due to their conditions are often isolated and locked in their own worlds.

“The space will offer another way for our children/young people to communicate and interact in a fun, fully immersive, magical, safe space which many children can enjoy for years to come.”

Bethany Community Outreach, near Erdington, will be able to continue its work to help people at risk of food poverty after being handed £2,000 to pay for new fridges and freezers that will allow for food donated via its food bank to be kept for longer.

Kevin Warrington said: “The award is very much appreciated as this will help us to replace the old fridges and freezers that we are currently using.

“In this current climate we are looking after over 1,000 people per month so this grant will certainly help us with this.”

Citizens Advice Staffordshire South West, based in Stafford, will buy two laptops and two desktop computers with a £1,870 grant to help people in the area by offering money and debt advice.

Lichfield and District Soroptimists will partner with the Buddy Bag Foundation and use £1,250 to help create special bags for children who are part of families impacted by domestic abuse.

Birmingham-based A Way Forward Foundation will use its £1,000 grant to support its great work in educating youngsters about the impact and danger of knife crime.

Gartmore Riding School, which works with disabled youngsters, will spend £500 on a new art table and activity board.

Lichfield City Girls under 10s and Maypole Football Club, in Birmingham, will both be wearing new kits this season after each receiving a £750 grant.

Simon Snell, from Maypole FC, said: “We were absolutely thrilled with the support received. It will and has made such a difference to a local community club that supports local children. Our club is run on volunteers and it is a massive part of the local community; we are inclusive and wanting all children to be able to participate.”

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 2019.

 

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 member 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 and James Brindle at Central England Co-operative on 01543 421390

 

Email –publicrelations@centralengland.coop