Four groups in Leicestershire handed early Christmas gift after sharing over £10,000 in funding
Posted by rob smyth | Published: 03/10/2017
Four charities, groups and projects in Leicestershire have unwrapped an early Christmas present after sharing over £10,000 in the latest payout from Central England Co-operative’s Community Dividend Fund.
A wide range of projects from across the area shared the festive funding boost of £6,145, with a total of £51,000 handed out to 30 good causes across 16 counties.
Ensemble Theatre Company will use £2,520 to pay for a raft of new equipment that will allow the group to put on theatrical works for the local community.
A total of £1,490 will be spent by Kibworth Community Library to pay for computer equipment such as iPads and a laptop to train volunteers to assist people when using digital resources.
Teachers at Outwoods Edge Primary School, in Loughborough, will spend £1,135 as part of an ambitious project to convert a disused IT room into a new library for youngsters.
School governor Julie Ralph said: “This is fantastic news for Outwoods Edge Primary School. We are currently in the process of moving our library to create a stimulating and fun reading environment which we hope will promote 'a love of reading' throughout the school.
“The money awarded from the Community Dividend Fund will enable us to buy some funky child friendly shelving and furniture to display our new reading material in an age appropriate way. We hope this award will assist us with developing reading and increase our attainment levels children achieve while attending Outwoods Edge Primary School.”
Youngsters heading to Enderby Community Library will soon be wowed after it was announced that they plan to spend a £1,000 grant to revamp its designated children’s areas.
Fergal O’Rorke, from the library, said: “The Enderby community library is very grateful to the community dividend fund for this grant. As a small voluntary organisation, we struggle to update and re-equip our library and this grant will help us upgrade and increase the furniture and equipment for our young users.”
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.
Martyn Cheatle, Chief Executive of Central England Co-operative, said: “I would like to urge all of our members to get in touch and put forward a community cause close to their heart for the Community Dividend scheme.”
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: People from four groups in Leicestershire celebrate 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 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 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