AUGUST 2018

aised over £150,000 for local charity partners
and worked with over 9,000 young people at 50
partner schools. In addition it has contributed
over 73,000 products to Foodbanks, providing
meals to over a 1,000 families in need.
“As a member owned Society this award is
particularly important to us because it was voted
for by our members,” said Ben Reid, Midcounties
Group CEO. “We have been previously voted Cooperative
of the Year twice in 2012 and 2015, so
I want to say a particularly big thank to everyone
who helped us achieve the hat-trick in 2018”.
The new award for 2018, Co-operative Council of
the Year, was picked up by Cardiff Council, which
has used co-operative approaches to inform and
shape responses to challenges in Wales.
The council works on the premise that “success
requires a broad partnership”, allowing and
encouraging everyone to contribute. This ethos
has been applied to a range of delivery models
to address city challenges, including education,
local environmental and recycling initiatives,
music and its own employee engagement. The
Council won the Best Employee Engagement
Initiative for ‘Employee Voice’ at the Wales People
Management Awards and was named Living Wage
for Wales Champion 2017-18.
“I am delighted the Council has been recognised
for the great co-operative work going on across the
authority and in the city,” said Cllr Peter Bradbury,
cabinet member for culture and leisure at Cardiff
Council. We know that we don’t have a monopoly
on good ideas so by working with partners –
whether it’s residents or local businesses, and
encouraging everyone to contribute, we can focus
our joint energies and creativities on a particular
issue.”
Presenting the awards were Nick Matthews,
chair of Co-operatives UK, and Cllr Sharon Taylor,
chair of CCIN and leader of Stevenage Council.
“These Awards highlight what can be achieved
when people work together to build a better
world and it is a privilege for CCIN to continue
our association with Co-operatives UK in such an
exciting way,” said Ms Taylor.
She told delegates: “There is no major challenge
to which there isn’t a co-operative solution. There
is always a co-operative solution to whatever
issues our councils are facing.”
She described some of the work of CCIN member
councils, such as community wealth building in
Preston through the power of public spending, a
co-operative neighbourhood management review
taking place in York, and the work of her own
council to tackle domestic abuse, “which is saving
lives every day”.
“The time for co-operatives is now,” she added.
“We make the difference.”
The right ingredients
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AUGUST 2018 | 29