Nearly 60 Central England Co-operative colleagues celebrate combined 1,900 years of long service

Posted by rob smyth | Published: 11/07/2017


Nearly 60 Central England Co-operative colleagues have been honoured for their long-service following a combined 1,900 years working for the Society.

A special afternoon tea event was held at Chatsworth House, in Derbyshire, for those who had achieved over 30, 40 and 50 years’ service.

The 57 colleagues were drawn from across the Society’s 16 county trading estate and work for all parts of the business ranging from food stores to funeral
homes.

Lesley Bennett, Funeral Director at Lutterworth Funeral Home, said: “I am very proud to have received my long-service award.

“I cannot believe 30 years have gone by so quickly. I started at the bottom and worked my way up to a position I absolutely love. I would not want to do anything else and Central England Co-operative has been very good to me.”

Colleagues rewarded for their long-service include those from the Society’s distribution sites in Leicester, Business Support Centre, in Lichfield, and food stores and funeral homes in Leicester, Birmingham, Derby, Coalville, Tamworth, Stone, Lichfield, and Lowestoft.

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. It is a modern, forward-looking organisation employing over 8,000 staff, with gross sales of £927 million in 2016/17. The Society’s principal areas of activity are food, funeral services, 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 2017. 

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 Newlife Foundation for Disabled Children 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