Park Cemetery, Ilkeston given a spruce up thanks to the Big Co-op Clean

Staff from Central England Co-operative gave up their time to support Friends of Park Cemetery to brighten up the grounds in Ilkeston.

The clean-up operation at Park Cemetery, Ilkeston, which took place on Thursday, 28 June, is part of a UK-wide initiative, The Big Co-op Clean, where thousands of co-op members demonstrate the power of working together to make a positive difference to their local environment and community.

David Clarke, Ilkeston Co-operative Funeral Director, said: “We spent the morning litter picking in the cemetery grounds and collected 12 bags of rubbish.
“As a co-op we are a business that’s embedded in our local community. That’s why the Big Co-op Clean campaign theme resonates so well with us. It’s working with our members, customers and local authorities to improve our local environment – we made a positive difference and demonstrated what being a co-operative is all about.”

Richard Windsor, Pride in Erewash Manager at Erewash Borough Council, said: “It’s fantastic that Central England Co-operative have joined forces with and The Friends of Park Cemetery and Erewash Borough Council to help maintain Park Cemetery. This is a great example that by working together we really can make a difference to our local environment”

The Big Co-op Clean is part of Co-operatives Fortnight (18 June – 2 July), an annual awareness campaign to help people become more familiar with co-operatives in their local area.
Ed Mayo is Secretary General for Co-operatives UK, the trade body behind Co-operatives Fortnight. He said: “It’s great that Central England Co-operative, like so many other co-ops, is backing this year’s campaign. It’s a small way of demonstrating that co-ops are different to other types of business. Because they are owned by their members – employees, customers or suppliers – and not distant shareholders, local issues and concerns are more of a priority. That’s just one of the reasons why Central England Co-operative is taking action.”
For more information on the campaign or to find an event near you, visit: http://www.uk.coop/ChooseCoop

Notes to editors

Co-operatives Fortnight is a two-week period when co-operatives of all shapes and sizes across the UK come together to encourage people to choose co-operative. It is a sector-wide national campaign organised by Co-operatives UK, sponsored generously by some of the UK’s most successful co-operatives and brought to life by co-ops across the UK.
The Big Co-op Clean theme was launched in 2014 as a focused activity that co-operatives of all kinds could organise. More than 100 co-ops participated in organising clean-ups of local parks, river banks, beaches and public spaces, or encouraged their customers to clean out their cupboards and donate to foodbanks.
Co-operatives are businesses owned and run by their members. There are nearly 7,000 independent co-operatives across the UK, working in all parts of the economy – from football to farming, retail to renewable energy.
For more information visit http://www.uk.coop/choosecoop

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’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 2015/16.

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 / Jo Baldock at Central England Co-operative on 01543 414140

Email –publicrelations@centralengland.coop