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December 06, 2012, 7:03 am -- /EPR NETWORK/ -- Generous-spirited people have got behind a gift appeal in Shrewsbury to help women and children spending Christmas in a refuge.
The Midcounties Co-op Travel branch, cooptravel.co.uk, in the town centre has asked colleagues, customers, local businesses and the general public to donate new toiletries, toys and clothing for the appeal.
Around 50 gifts have already been donated at the branch in Pride Hill and the collection continues until 12 December.
Organiser Kate Walmsley, Senior Travel Advisor, said: “The gifts will be wrapped and presented to our charity partner Women’s Aid who will distribute them to refuges in the region. We would like to thank everyone who has given so far; we have been touched by their support.
“I’m sure it will lift the spirit of the families who receive the gifts this Christmas to know that the community at large is thinking of them.”
The Midcounties Co-op Travel, a locally owned and independent business, is part of community retailer The Midcounties Co-operative. Midcounties is supporting charity partner Women’s Aid, the key national charity working to end domestic violence against women and children.
Its businesses have been raising funds and awareness to support the charity’s work nationally and eleven local services that operate within its trading areas, including refuges at Shropshire, Wolverhampton, Walsall, Wyre Forest, Warwickshire, Wycombe, Oxfordshire, The Forest of Dean and Gloucestershire.
Colleagues are also giving their time to volunteering projects and getting involved in campaign work for Women’s Aid.
ENDS
Notes to Editors
The Midcounties Co-operative has been named ‘Co-operative of the Year 2012’,
recognised for its excellence, innovation and ethics in business by Co-operatives
UK.
It has headquarters in Warwickshire, with trading outlets in Oxfordshire, Gloucestershire, Wiltshire, Shropshire, West Midlands, Worcestershire and the surrounding counties.
The Society’s trading groups are food retail, funeral, travel, pharmacy, childcare nurseries, employee benefits and energy. Midcounties is the largest independent co-operative society in the UK and has more than 470 branches and 245,000 active trading members. It is also in ‘The Sunday Times Best 25 Big Companies to Work For’ list for the second year running. The Society's mission statement is 'To be a successful consumer co-operative working towards creating a better, fairer world, and to enhance the lives of our colleagues, members, customers, and the communities we serve'.
For more details call Lorna Bishop at Seal on 0121 616 5800.
Visit www.midcounties.coop
The United Nations General Assembly has declared 2012 as the International Year of Co-operatives, highlighting the contribution of co-operatives to socio-economic development, particularly their impact on poverty reduction, employment generation and social integration. The Year will highlight the strengths of the co-operative business model as an alternative means of doing business and furthering socio-economic development.
About Women’s Aid
Women's Aid is the national domestic violence charity that co-ordinates and
supports an England-wide network of over 500 local services working to end domestic
violence against women and children. Keeping the voices of survivors at the heart of
its work, Women's Aid campaigns for better legal protection and services, providing
a strategic "expert view" to government on laws, policy and practice affecting
abused women and children. In partnership with its national network, Women's Aid
runs public awareness and education campaigns, bringing together national and local
action, and developing new training and resources. Women's Aid provides a package
of vital 24 hour lifeline services through its publications (available in 11
languages including English), websites (www.womensaid.org.uk and www.thehideout.org.uk), and running the Freephone 24 Hour National Domestic Violence
Helpline in partnership with Refuge. Women's Aid is a registered charity no
1054154.
Contact Details: For more details call Lorna Bishop at Seal on 0121 616 5800.
