CBeebies Twirlywoos visit Stirchley Co-op to film a new episode and donate to Newlife Charity

Posted by nathan lloyd | Published: 05/09/2016


Twirlywoos come from far away and secretly interact with the real world, and on Sunday 4 September, Twirlywoos visited Central England Co-operative’s Stirchley food store as they embarked on a new adventure.

Twirlywoos is a popular children’s pre-school comedy series from Ragdoll Productions, which encourages youngsters to think for themselves and gain confidence in their own perceptions of the world. These naïve, joyous little creatures learn and experiment both outside in the big world (at Stirchley food store this time) and at home in their special red boat.

As a result of the filming, Central England Co-operative has donated their filming fee to their staff-elected corporate charity, Newlife Foundation for Disabled Children. Newlife is dedicated to providing guidance and practical support for children with disabilities and their families, and although Newlife is a national charity, every penny raised by Central England Co-operative is helping children in the Society’s trading area. So far, the partnership has raised £1.2million and helped fund specialist disability equipment for more than 520 children. 

Chris Wood, Director, Ragdoll Productions Ltd and Producer, Twirlywoos, said: “Ragdoll thanks Central England Co-operative for all their help and assistance with the production of a new episode of their popular children’s programme, Twirlywoos, by granting filming facilities at their Stirchley store.  Ragdoll is also delighted to know of their decision to donate their filming fee to Newlife Foundation, which is a very generous gesture to a worthwhile cause.” 

Newlife Head of Operations, Stephen Morgan, said: “Central England Co-operative have been doing an amazing job of supporting disabled children across their trading area through a range of fundraising activities. This donation from Ragdoll Productions will help another local child get the vital specialist equipment they need for everyday life. We’d like to thank everyone at Central England Co-operative for their continued support, which is helping to transform young lives.”

The Stirchley Co-operative store is open from 7am-10pm Monday – Friday, 7am-9pm Saturday and 10am-4pm on a Sunday. The store offers a wide range of products from everyday necessities to something a little more special. The store offer includes: fresh and local fruit and vegetables, an in-store bakery offering breads and pastries, chilled beers and wines, fresh and frozen product, Truly Irresistible product ranges, a Deli, a café, Costa Coffee, a fish counter, Brantano Shoes, The Works, Dorothy Perkins, Julian Charles, a key cutting service and electrical goods.

The store also offers; a travel agent, photo booth, Paypoint, Collect Plus, Lottery, foreign currency, a car park and a free cash machine.


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 projected gross sales of £958million for 2016/17.  The Society’s principal areas of activity are food, funeral services, and property. Central England Co-operative has more than 430 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 2016/17.

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.

For more information visit www.centralengland.coop, follow Central England Co-operative on Twitter: @mycoopfood, and on Facebook: facebook.com/centralenglandcooperative

Rob Smyth / Jo Baldock at Central England Co-operative on 01543 414140
Email –publicrelations@centralengland.coop

About Ragdoll Productions
Ragdoll Productions, a privately owned family company, was founded by Anne Wood in 1984 and has produced more than 1,500 internationally acclaimed children’s television programmes aimed at the youngest viewers, including the phenomenally successful, BAFTA-winning Teletubbies, broadcast in more than 120 countries and territories around the world; the double-BAFTA-winning In the Night Garden; BAFTA-winning Dipdap; and The Adventures of Abney & Teal, Rosie & Jim, Brum, Twirlywoos and internationally award-winning Open A Door. 

In September 2013, Ragdoll Worldwide, a joint venture with BBC Worldwide, was acquired by DHX Media, a leading Canadian broadcaster, distributor and producer, and they now own the rights to the early Ragdoll catalogue including Teletubbies and In the Night Garden.
For more information visit www.ragdoll.co.uk  


About Newlife
• Newlife is the UK’s leading children’s disability charity, specialising in support to aid children affected by all disabilities and terminal illness.
• Without Newlife, thousands of children would suffer pain, isolation, worsening conditions and poor quality of life.
• Newlife is the UK’s largest non-statutory provider of specialist equipment for children with disabilities and terminal illness.
• Newlife Foundation supports families nationally, through a range of free services including:Nurse-staffed helpline, Equipment grants, Emergency equipment loans, Sensory and developmental toy ‘pod’ loans and Comfort Capsules
• In addition to funding the above services, the charity also offers a support service delivered by specially trained nurses and campaigns for a fairer deal for children.
• Newlife funds pioneering Medical Research to tackle the biggest threat to child health today; Birth defects. The Newlife Birth Defects Centre based at the Institute of Child Health is Europe’s first dedicated Birth Defects Research Centre.
• To meet current demand, the charity needs over £8,000 a day to provide essential equipment such as wheelchairs, beds, walking frames, seating, safety equipment and communication aids to children nationwide.
• Newlife does not receive any government funding and is reliant on income from its unique recycling operation, volunteers and supporters all over the UK and regional appeals to carry out its work. Newlife is one of the few national charities that actively offers donors/supporters the chance to ensure 100% of their gift is spent how they want it used - nothing taken out for admin etc.
• Newlife recognises there are almost a million children in the UK with significant disabilities. It is believed that this number is increasing, as childhood deaths decrease due to improved treatment and management of prematurity, accidents, infections, cancers and inborn conditions.

Information on the charity can be found at www.newlifecharity.co.uk or the trading company at www.newlifetrading.co.uk.  For further advice from the Newlife Nurse Services, call 0800 902 0095.
Newlife followers can also track Newlife on Twitter, www.twitter.com/newlifecharity, and Facebook, www.facebook.com/newlifefoundation. 
Newlife’s Chief Executive Officer is Mrs Sheila Brown, OBE, FRSM. She is a parent of disabled children and a leading activist and speaker for the welfare and health of disabled children, awarded an OBE by the Queen in 2002 for services to child health.