Students get back to school funding boost from Co-op

STUDENTS in Carmarthenshire are enjoying a back to school funding boost after Co-op members generated more than £3 million for education and skills in two years.

Since the Co-op’s local community fund was launched in 2016, a total of £3,100,000 has been shared among more than 3,000 schools, colleges and skills development initiatives in the UK, 14 of which are in Carmarthenshire.

Cylch Meithrin Felinfoel, Felinfoel Family Centre, and Ysgol Heol Goffa Special Needs School PTA are among the groups in the county that have shared £24,000 as a result of the scheme.

Co-op members, who receive a 5% reward for themselves with a further 1% going to local causes when they buy own-brand products, have a say in how the money is allocated, and are encouraged to select the organisations they wish to support online.

Rebecca Birkbeck, director of community engagement at the Co-op, said: “Support for young people and learning is an integral part of the Co-op’s ethos, whether it is through the local community fund, our apprentice programme or our support for academies.”

She added: “Along with our members, we strongly believe that by backing young people we are not only equipping them for the future, but also helping to make their communities a better, happier, and healthier place for everyone.”

The Co-op has a distinguished history of supporting education dating back to 1844 when the first Co-op Society in Rochdale opened a reading room above its store.

Earlier this year the Co-op announced it was putting a further £3.6 million into its academies programme to kick-start the next growth phase, which will see the number of schools across the north of England increase from 12 at present to up to 40 by 2022.

The current academies have in excess of 10,000 students and employ more than 1,000 teachers and support staff. Under the new plan, that is expected to grow to more than 40,000 students and 4,000 staff.