Northamptonshire charities and groups handed share of £160,000 community fund in 2016

Posted by nathan lloyd | Published: 30/12/2016


Central England Co-operative can today reveal that it has helped change the lives of 89 groups and charities – by donating nearly £160,000 from its Community Dividend Fund in 2016.

A diverse range of projects picked from across 16 counties were handed a funding boost during the past 12 months, with the largest single amount given being £5,000.

Everyone from Scout groups to football clubs and churches to schools benefited from the fund that 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 from the Midlands to the East Coast.

Martyn Cheatle, Chief Executive of Central England Co-operative, said: “We have handed out nearly £160,000 to projects in our communities in 2016 and over £2 million since the scheme was established in 2007.

“The Community Dividend reflects a key principle of our society, in that we reward the loyalty of our customers by investing in and supporting local communities.

“The scheme helps to benefit a wide variety of projects, with grants between £100 to a £5,000, which will make the communities that we serve a better place for our members to live, work and visit.

“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.”

In the past 12 months, several projects have shared thousands of pounds in and around Northamptonshire as part of the community Dividend Fund.

The cash was handed to Burton Latimer Town Cricket Club, Weldon Primary Community Group, Brigstock Women’s Institute and Weekly Rovers Under 7s.

Weldon Primary Community Group were handed the largest funding boost, picking up £4,705 to help pay for the much-needed refurbishment of a play area at the heart of the village.

The money will mean that the play area will eventually be open to all ages – even allowing adults to use the park to exercise.

Burton Latimer Town Cricket Club will use £4,300 towards the installation of security gates after two break-ins at the site saw goods taken and damage caused.

Ian Watson, from Burton Latimer Town Cricket Club, spoke of why they applied for a grant from the Community Dividend Fund.

He said: “We most grateful to the Central England Co-operative for this generous grant which will help us to improve security of our premises by providing security grilles on all windows and doors. “Unfortunately the club has suffered two break-ins over the last couple of years and expensive equipment has been taken. We have also suffered damage to our premises. The club is solely run by volunteers for the benefit of boys and girls as well as senior men’s and ladies teams. We receive no other funding so can ill afford to replace equipment. The new arrangements will ensure the club provides the best facilities for the local community.”

Brigstock Women’s Institute were handed £1,140 to pay for new curtains to spruce up the WI Hall where they hold their meetings.

Glenda Stephen, Secretary of Brigstock WI, said: “The generous grant from Central England Co-operative will enable us to purchase flame retardant curtains to replace the 30 year old ones we have now.  The curtains will enhance the ambience of the hall for all those who use it. 

“We are extremely grateful that you have awarded us the grant and are extremely excited to see the new look.”
Weekly Rovers Under 7s will spend a £350 grant on new football kit for the coming season.

People can apply for funding by heading online and visiting https://communities.centralengland.coop/ or heading in store to pick up an application form.

Potential applicants have to have been a Central England Co-operative member for six months, the project should be in the trading area of a Central England Co-operative store and all applications will need a referee.

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 recently celebrated being named Leading Co-operative of the Year 2016 by Co-operatives UK. 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 http://www.centralengland.coop follo,w Central England Co-operative on Twitter: @mycoopfood, and on Facebook: facebook.com/centralenglandcooperative
Rob Smyth – PR officer - Central England Co-operative - 01543 414140
Email – publicrelations@centralengland.coop