OurCoop has supported the development of 36 new member-owned businesses across the UK since 2022 through partnerships with Plunkett UK and Co-operative Futures.

The society, which was formed in January through the merger of Central Co-op, Midcounties Co-operative and Chelmsford Star, has provided funding, training and business advice to help new co-operatives launch and grow.

OurCoop said the support was designed to help community-owned businesses focus on long-term local impact rather than short-term profit.

The work forms part of its commitment to support the UK Government’s pledge to double the size of the co-operative economy.

OurCoop said its greater scale had also allowed it to support the wider co-operative movement through procurement collaboration, which has saved independent societies more than £30m a year through collective purchasing.

Over the past year, Co-operative Futures has helped register three new co-ops and supported four others to take ownership of community assets with backing from OurCoop.

In 2025, the organisation provided more than 2,000 hours of guidance to community-run businesses.

Plunkett UK supported 34 new community-owned businesses last year, including six community-owned pubs and four community-owned shops across OurCoop’s trading area.

Nationally, 46 new community-benefit societies were also registered in 2025 using Plunkett UK model rules.

The update comes during Co-op Fortnight, the annual celebration of co-operative businesses.

This year’s theme is “co-operate and we can change the world”, with OurCoop colleagues taking part in Plunkett UK’s Chilterns Challenge 2026 to raise funds for rural communities.

Among the organisations supported through the partnership is The Fox Inn in Ryton, Shropshire.

When the pub closed unexpectedly, more than 210 local residents worked with Plunkett UK to raise funds and bring it back into community ownership.

The pub now operates as a local social hub and is a certified Warm Hub during winter, opening twice a week to offer free tea, coffee and a warm space for residents.

OurCoop has also worked with Co-operative Futures to support Wylderne, a community co-op that has bought The Wilderness Centre in the Forest of Dean, Gloucestershire.

The centre has operated as an outdoor education venue since 1969 and offers activities including raft building, rock climbing, mountain biking, hill walking and nature exploration.

Mike Pickering, head of sustainability at OurCoop, said: “The theme of this year’s Co-op Fortnight, ‘co-operate and we can change the world’, really gets to the heart of why we’re so passionate about supporting local co-ops.

“Community-owned businesses like The Fox Inn and Wylderne are invaluable to their local areas, having a real impact on social and environmental matters that mean the most to residents.

“We’re proud to partner with great organisations like Plunkett and Co-operative Futures to enhance the difference co-ops are able to make and support the wider co-operative economy.”

The Fox Inn chair David Oliver said the support from Plunkett and OurCoop had been “invaluable”.

“Whenever I picked up the phone, they always guided me towards the right advisor and provided genuinely useful insights,” he said.

Co-operative Futures executive director Jo White added: “Supporting community co-operatives, such as Wylderne, puts power directly into local hands, enabling people to shape and sustain the places they call home.

“When communities co-operate, we build a fairer, more resilient future for everyone.”

OurCoop said it would continue to work with Plunkett UK, Co-operatives UK and the Co-operative Party to influence public policy and support the growth of the co-operative economy.

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