Three groups in Yorkshire handed early Christmas gift after sharing nearly £5,000 in funding
Posted by rob smyth | Published: 03/10/2017
Three charities, groups and projects in Yorkshire have unwrapped an early Christmas present after sharing nearly £5,000 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 £4,700, with a total of £51,000 handed out to 30 good causes across 16 counties.
West Yorkshire Scouts have received £2,000 to pay for new canoes as part of a bid to allow more youngsters in the area to learn.
Paul Cartwright, from the group, said: “We are extremely pleased to receive this Community Dividend grant from Central England Co-operative.
“This new injection of funding will allow us to purchase some new open canoes which are specifically designed for younger people.
“This will mean that we can deliver training opportunities to a wide area within West Yorkshire but initially focussing in the Shepley / Holmfirth areas of Huddersfield.
“Our young people aged 10 to 18 will greatly benefit from this equipment which enable them to achieve higher levels of skills and reach goals which were previously unattainable.”
Family support charity Home-Start Kirkless will use £2,000 for a variety of items including duvets, curtains, bedding and children’s clothing.
Kerri Flanagan, scheme manager, said: “We are delighted to have been awarded £2,000 from the Community Dividend Fund to support our affordable warmth initiative, which will go a long way to help our most vulnerable families in the coming winter months.
“Many of our families with young children struggle to afford the most basic essential items to keep themselves warm and the grant will support the distribution of items such as coats, hats, scarves and wellington boots for the children as well as duvets and curtains for the households where parents are really struggling financially to cope and need a helping hand.”
A total of £700 has been handed to Cumberworth Baby and Toddler Group, in Huddersfield, to pay for arts and crafts for children.
The Society recently spent £300,000 on a new food store in Dodworth and revamped three stores in Wooldale following a merger with Wooldale Co-operative Society.
Representatives from all three groups gathered at the New Mill Food Store, in Wooldale, to celebrate their funding award.
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: Members of West Yorkshire Scouts, Home-Start Kirkless, and Cumberworth Baby and Toddler Group 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