Co-op membership drive will see people win amazing rewards and further community investment

Posted by rob smyth | Published: 24/07/2020

Central England Co-op is on the lookout for new members and encouraging people to ‘swipe and delight’ to win amazing rewards.

The retailer, which has over 260 stores across 16 counties, is launching a recruitment drive for new members following a spike in interest from customers during lockdown on the benefits of being a co-op member.

Now, shoppers will be able to enjoy a range of rewards and win prizes by signing up and, by continuing to shop with the retailer, allow it to continue to invest hundreds of thousands of pounds in local community initiatives.

Brad Tuckfield, Store Manager, said: “We have been so pleased to have been able to be there for our communities during lockdown and also to have been able to support a range of great local causes during these difficult times.

“Customers throughout the past few months have been telling us how much they like the co-op model and our values and principles and so, today, we are saying why not become a member and be part of our efforts to make a difference.

“All people have to do is pick up a temporary card in store and swipe it at the till to start earning rewards and the chance to win amazing prizes. On top of that members know that every time they shop with us it means we can continue to invest hundreds of thousands of pounds into their local community, something that is more important than ever in these difficult times.

Customers, by shopping at their local Central England Co-op store, have allowed the Society to invest in the local community and make a big difference during the Coronavirus pandemic.

Some great examples of this investment include:

• Shared out over £50,000 between 60 good causes as part of a special COVID-19 Community Dividend Fund
• Delivered over 1,000 care packages to hospices, care homes and hospitals to say ‘thank you’ to key workers as well as hundreds of smaller donations to local charities, community groups and good causes
• Created over 300,000 meals for people in need following a donation to FareShare Midlands and donated over 75,000 items to local food banks following an urgent appeal
• Worked with local councils and organisations to launch community food hubs, delivering vital food and essentials to vulnerable people
• Donated £40,000 to Refuge and Birmingham and Solihull Women’s Aid to help support those impacted by a rise in domestic violence during lockdown and also financially supported its corporate charity partner Dementia UK

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.

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 with interests in food, funeral, floral, travel and property investment.

Co-operatives have always been there for their communities; they were formed to protect them and help them flourish. 

Our 7,900 colleagues who serve Members and customers work hard to ensure that co-operative values, principles and spirit flow through everything we do to help support and improve our local communities.

Owned by hundreds of thousands of Members, we have over 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. 

We are proud of our reputation for ethical business practices and corporate responsibility.

We invest a percentage of our trading profit into local communities through our Community Dividend Fund scheme, have donated over £1.3 million to our corporate charity partner Dementia UK and also operate a pioneering food redistribution partnership with FareShare Midlands so unsold food goes to those in need.

Visit www.centralengland.coop for more information or follow us on Facebook or Twitter using @mycoopfood

Press office contacts: Rob Smyth and James Brindle

Phone - 01543 421390

Email - publicrelations@centralengland.coop