Acting legend Stephen Graham stopped off at Central England Co-op store in Leicestershire to help back charity event

Colleagues at a Central England Co-op store in Leicestershire were given a boost in their efforts to raise money for charity when acting legend Stephen Graham dropped by.

The star of big and small screen hits that include Line of Duty, This is England and Pirates of the Caribbean nipped in to Ibstock Food Store, in Ashby Road, as the team put on a Back to the 80s event and raffle to raise vital funds for the retailer’s corporate charity Dementia UK.

The visit by the star and his wife Hannah helped the colleagues raise over £700 for the good cause.

The star is widely regarded as one of the greatest actors of his generation and further credits include working with director Martin Scorsese on Gangs of New York and The Irishman, playing Al Capone in HBO series Boardwalk Empire and most recently stealing the screen in Sky One show Save Me.

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 and property investment.

Owned by hundreds of thousands of members, its over 7,800 colleagues serve customers across 400 plus trading sites in 16 counties in the East and West Midlands, Yorkshire, Suffolk, Norfolk, Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire.

Its purpose is to inspire communities to create a sustainable Society for all.

It actively campaigns for the Government to increase sentencing for violent attacks on retail workers and works with FareShare Midlands and hundreds of food banks, generating enough food donations to create over 2.1 million meals for people in need.

The Society embraces inclusivity and equality and is a signed-up member to the Business in the Community (BITC) Race at Work Charter, while it is also fully committed to addressing the impact of climate change and is on track to be Carbon Neutral by 2030.

It invests a percentage of its trading profit into local communities through its Community Dividend Fund scheme which has seen over £175,000 shared out between 116 good causes over the past 12 months.

Central England Co-op was named Leading Co-op of the Year by Co-operatives UK in 2021.

Press office contacts: Rob Smyth and James Brindle

Phone - 01543 421390

Email - publicrelations@centralengland.coop