Thirteen groups across the West Midlands handed £16,665 funding boost
Posted by rob smyth | Published: 08/07/2019
Two community cinema projects and a vital centre that supports victims of domestic abuse were among the groups who have shared a £16,665 community grant in the West Midlands thanks to Central England Co-operative.
Thirteen organisations and charities shared the payout, with a total of over £44,000 handed out to 36 good causes across 16 counties.
Birmingham Crisis Centre has been handed £3,500 to pay for the complete refurbishment of one of its accommodation units, which provide a kitchen, bathroom and bedroom for female victims of domestic abuse and their children.
The money will pay for redecorating, kitchen units, sink, cooker, bathroom, shower and fixtures and fittings.
Chief Executive Alan Fleming said: “On behalf of the women and children who are in residence at our confidential refuge escaping domestic abuse, the trustee’s, staff and the families are extremely delighted with the very generous award made to our charity for our refurbishment project.
We have 24 self-contained apartments on site and this award will completely refurbish an apartment consisting of a new bathroom, kitchen, lounge, bedroom and all necessities brand new for the family to live in until we find a safe secure area and home for the family to move on to start a new life.”
St Georges Knights Powerchair Football Club, based in Burton, provides sessions for people with physical disabilities to participate in sport.
The group currently has two powerchairs and will use a grant of £2,000 towards buying two more.
Arts charity Black Country Touring will use £900 to pay for a new laptop that will form part of an ambitious community cinema project. The project works across 13 venues in Sandwell, Wolverhampton and Dudley and provide a pop up cinema experience as part of an effort to cut levels of social isolation and loneliness by allowing people to come together enjoy, share and discuss film.
A similar scheme, operated by Screen B14, has been given £1,200 for a new projector as part of an expansion effort to offer its film screenings to more people including those who are hard of hearing, those with disabilities and homeless people.
Sukayna Najmudin, chairperson from Screen B14, said: “As an organisation, we have built ourselves on the foundation of accessibility. This grant will be invested into purchasing our own equipment, which will allow us to build on the services we can offer our community and help towards running more accessible film screenings.”
A £2,000 grant will be used by Brushstrokes Community Project, in Smethwick, to support its busy community café. The money will be used to buy new kitchen equipment, chairs and tables to ensure the group can provide hot and nutritious food for people in need.
Rising Stars, based in Aston, works with young people from all backgrounds to help them fulfil their potential and pursue a passion for sport, in particular football.
The group will use a total of £1,095 to buy a new pair of portable metal goal posts to support a specialist programme aimed at diverting young people away from drugs alcohol, gang culture and knife crime by using sport as a diversion.
Stafford Stallions Football Club will use £650 to pay for a new kit.
Butterflies Breast Care Support Group has been handed £200 in food vouchers to promote healthy eating.
InUnity, a group which works with youngsters in the Billesley area of Birmingham, has been handed £520 to pay for a camera and sewing machine to support a creative arts project.
A total of £1,000 will be used by New Heights Warren Farm Community Project to spruce up a community café.
Quinborne Community Association will spend £1,980 on converting a room at its site in Ridgeacre Road to cater for the elderly so that it can provide a drop-in/information room and provide courses.
Fox Hollies Shed, which is a place for isolated people to meet and take part in practical activities, has been handed a grant of £950 to pay for a selection of power tools for its members.
Lichfield Arts will spend £670 on new lighting to support community concerts and festivals.
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