Community

At The Midcounties Co-operative we place a great importance on supporting the communities we serve, because it’s something that matters to our members, our customers and our colleagues. Concern for the community is one of the co-operative principles on which we base our business and we look to give something back to our communities in a number of ways.

From volunteering at schools and local charities to fundraising for our charity partner, and donating a share of our profits back to organisations that need our support, there are so many ways we are engaging with the people we serve. Our work within the community has been recognised by a number of national bodies and we’ve received many awards. Take a look through this section to find out more about what we do, and how we could help your organisation.

Volunteering

As a Society, our colleagues also receive an entitlement of up to three days each year to volunteer within their normal working hours.

We believe that volunteering gives our colleagues a fantastic opportunity to develop individually and as part of a team while making a real difference to their community. Colleagues taking part in our volunteer programme have participated in numerous activities – anything from painting a church hall, to supporting employability events or one-to-one mentoring for young people.

If you would like to find out more about the scheme and how our colleague volunteers can make a difference at your community group, or if you are interested in volunteering, click on the link below to contact the Midcounties Community team.

https://www.midcounties.coop/our-communities/volunteering/

Responsible Retailing

As a co-operative we’re working towards a better, fairer world. Our Society is working to make a difference in a positive way to the lives of people, both in your community and throughout the world. For example, on a local level our stores over essential services and we support and fund local community projects. On a worldwide level, we continue to support a variety of initiatives including Fairtrade, ethical sourcing and caring for the environment.

All of our trading groups are doing their bit, with our Childcare nurseries biodegradable nappies are used and children are taught the value of recycling and environmental awareness.

Brochure Recycling

As you can imagine, producing numerous travel brochures creates waste. As part of The Midcounties Co-operative’s commitment to the environment we endeavour to recycle all our brochures and, wherever possible, send e-brochures to our customers to help reduce waste even further.

Fair Tax

The Society was reaccredited for the second time with the fair tax mark in 2016 , which certifies that we pay the right amount of tax in the right place at the right time. This Tax Charter represents a formalisation of our approach on tax matters and reflects our outlook and values.

Within the overall framework set by the Charter, we believe it is fair that we look for ways to mitigate the Society’s tax bill to ensure we do not pay more tax than we need to.

However, our approach will always be based on a recognition that as a values led and ethical organisation we should pay the taxes we are due to pay and we should not engage in aggressive tax avoidance schemes, even if legal.