Central England Co-op donates £5k to boost eight charity and community projects in Derbyshire

Posted by rob smyth | Published: 06/07/2018


Eight projects in Derbyshire are celebrating after sharing over £5,000 in the latest payout from Central England Co-operative’s Community Dividend Fund.

A wide range of groups, organisations and charities were handed grants, with a total of £43,000 handed out to 40 good causes across 16 counties.

In particular, the Society is proud to have been able to support a range of great local good causes in the Littleover area by sharing out over £2,000 from our Community Dividend Fund.

Findern Primary School will use £1,100 to buy a wide range of supplies to allow youngsters to enjoy outdoor activities and learn about the environment.

Some of the items include storage boxes, magnifying glasses and camp fire grills.

A spokesman from the school said: “We are delighted to receive our Community Dividend Fund grant.

“We are a very successful Forest School and we are extremely grateful to Central England Co-op for funding the extra resources we need so that we can provide as many sessions as possible for our children.”

Caudwells Mill Trust, based in Matlock, has been given a grant of £200 to support a major project to preserve a Grade II listed mill.

The money will be used to help with the creation of a special display to educate people on the work being undertaken.

Age UK Bakewell will use £750 to buy two new wheelchairs that will allow people they help to get out and about to appointments and to enjoy special trips.

Carsington Sailability, based near Ashbourne, will use £800 to pay for improvement work that will allow better access for wheelchair and walking aid users looking to use changing rooms and showers.

Robert Needham, from the club, said: “This grant is very welcome as it will help us greatly improve access to and from the water particularly for wheelchair users but also for anyone for whom the present sideways sloping and uneven path creates problems.”

Jog Oakwood, based in Ripley, has been handed £500 to pay for items such as first aid kits, body worn torches and hi-viz jackets in an effort to get people in the community fit and active.

A grant of £820 will be used by 4th Bolsover Scouts to pay for new archery equipment, camping stoves and oil lamps.

Borrowash Victoria under 12s will run out in new kit next season thanks to a grant of £600.

A mower and strimmer will be purchased with a £250 grant by the Chellaston Residents’ Association to help spruce up the local area.

Roy Witheford, treasurer of Chellaston Residents’ Association, said: “We have set up a task group in order to keep the village of Chellaston neat and tidy. We have taken on certain gardening and tidying jobs to improve the appearance of our environment.”

Ashbourne Road Food Store Manager Rob Owen said: “We are delighted that these great projects and good causes have been handed a grant for the fantastic work they do in the community.

“Community Dividend Fund grants like this showcase how being a member and continuing to support Central England Co-op helps us as a Society continue to invest and fund vital projects in the local area.”

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 Derbyshire 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 2018.

 

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 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