Community

In October, we welcomed hundreds of members to our Co-op Corner Cafés and pop-up events in London, Cardiff, Edinburgh, Belfast and Manchester, while our Member Activators hosted over 120 local events and engaged with more than 7,700 Co-op Members across the UK. For those that couldn’t join us in person, we also ran online conversations.…

Co-op is proud to support the Warm Welcome campaign’s 100% pledge, ensuring that everyone in the UK can access a Warm Welcome Space within 30 minutes of their home. The Warm Welcome Campaign provides support and resources for spaces to focus on supporting their communities – enabling new connection, friendship, support, and opportunities for people…

Giving young people a voice on youth violence  Over the last 4 years our Co-op has supported the Peer Action Collective (PAC), along with Youth Endowment Fund and #iwill fund. PAC has impacted the lives of over 12,000 young people across England and Wales.  PAC has provided paid employment for 250 young people who have…

Together with our Co-op Members, we’ve been championing Fairtrade and the difference it makes to producers and communities across the world for more than 30 years. In recent conversations with members, they shared over 300,000 ideas about how we could tackle the big issues they’re facing right now. We know our members care about Fairtrade…

Co-op Members listened to some incredible musical talent and chose who they wanted to take to the stage at Belladrum Tartan Heart Festival earlier this year. In April, we started our talent search by asking our musically-minded members in Scotland to enter our Co-op Members Talent Choice competition for the chance to perform at the…

Thousands of Co-op Members and colleagues took more than 92,000 actions to help us get outdoors and smash our target of 50,000 hours in nature this summer. Members told us that getting out in nature was important to them and asked us to help them to do more. So, in partnership with Nature Neighbourhoods –…

Co-op at Festivals 2025 wrap-up – Member perks, Member deals, Highlights and more See how we brought the vibes (and the essentials) to festivals in 2025, from member perks and merch to unforgettable moments at 9 of the UK’s biggest music festivals this year. What was Co-op like at Festivals this year? The best way…

Our network of 90 Member Activators help to raise awareness of Co-op Membership locally. They work closely with Co-op Members, local groups and other colleagues to deliver initiatives on the issues that matter most in communities across the UK.  Since September 2024, our Member Activators have completed over 320,000 member interactions to help make a…

Over 100 Co-op Members and Co-op Academy students turned their hand to product design to help us give Crumbs – our gingerbread person – a summer makeover in support of our charity partner, Barnardo’s. To celebrate bringing communities together to raise £7m to support positive futures for 1million young people, Co-op is donating £10,000 to…

In recent conversations, Co-op Members asked us to help them reduce their impact on the environment. So, throughout June, our Member Activators brought their communities together to help them protect nature and take action on climate change. Here Stefan Klueter, Member Activator for Greater Manchester Central and West, tells us about all the activities he…

This year is the United Nations’ International Year of Co-operatives, and to mark it, our Co-op and Co-operatives UK – which represents thousands of independent co-ops across the country – recently welcomed world-wide co-operators to special events hosted across Rochdale and Manchester.   The Festival of Co-operation saw the largest gathering of international co-operatives leaders in over a…

To celebrate our partnership with The Big Lunch, we brought Co-op Members and local communities together in June to share food and connect with each other.  Mimi Lung, Member Activator for Lewisham, Southwark, Croydon, Bromley and Sutton, attended the Eden Project’s annual The Big Lunch in London. It was a great opportunity to meet local…