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10 years of Community Champions
We're celebrating a decade of difference.
Our Community Champions scheme enables us to support our local communities, by offering funding to good causes.
This year, we're marking the scheme's 10 year anniversary.
In the last decade, numerous local groups, charities and good causes have benefited every year, receiving donation amounts ranging from £200 to over £100,000.
Since 2013 we have...
- Supported 2,408 groups
- Raised £4,522,000
- Supported 207 breakfast clubs
Fundraising is a community effort; a donation is made each time a member shops with their dividend card, colleagues host fundraising events, and there’s collection tins in Lincolnshire Co-op outlets for customers to drop their change.
Community Champions are voted on by our colleagues and members.
Hear from the groups themselves...
Out of the hundreds of local groups, good causes and charities you've supported, we've selected one from each year, to illustrate the enormous impact across our communities.
2013 - Walcott Village Hall in North Kesteven
It's a great space for the community to come together, and attracts many local groups and clubs - from zumba to indoor bowling! It's also a social destination, hosting church lunches, quiz nights, and celebrations for big national events, such as the recent jubilee and coronation. On top of all this, the local school also use the hall for P.E lessons.
Walcott Village Hall first became Community Champions back in 2013, receiving £997.85. The scheme has also supported them twice since, paying for essentials such us windows, heaters, WiFi, replacement of the kitchen, and a repaint of the hall.
2014 - Sutton on Trent Primary School in Nottinghamshire
Sutton on Trent Primary and Nursery School, established in 1878, has been an integral part of the local community. The school values the importance of caring for the community and has strong ties with it. Through the Community Champions scheme, the school has received a total of £810.12, with £363.04 granted in Winter 2013-14 and £447.08 in Summer 2022.
These funds, combined with others, have been utilised to make significant enhancements to the playground. The new play area will nearly double the all-weather surface available to the children, especially during the rainy months.
Rebecca Henderson from the school's PTA spoke about the impact of the Community Champions scheme on their school. She expressed her excitement about the funds contributing to the school's most significant project yet, highlighting the specialness of community involvement. Many students' parents and grandparents attended the school, making the support from the community even more meaningful. Rebecca encouraged others to apply for the scheme, emphasizing the positive experience they had.
2015 - Welton 1st/2nd Brownies in West Lindsey
Girl guiding inspires girls aged 4-18 to be their best selves, find their voice, and make a positive difference in the community, through fun, friendship, challenge and adventure.
In 2015, £773.56 was raised to be shared between the 1st and 2nd units of Welton Brownies, a group run by a team of dedicated volunteers.
Alex Berry, a Unit Leader at Welton Brownies, said: "The funds helped to purchase essential equipment for the unit meeting activities. Without the support from Community Champions, we would have struggled to offer the range of activities to the Brownies."
2016 - Lincolnshire Wildlife Trust (Gibraltar Point) in East Lindsey
After a tidal surge hit the east coast, Lincolnshire Wildlife Trust's flagship Gibraltar Point visitor centre, which offered an important educational programme, was destroyed.
They received £70,000 in Community Champions funding, enabling the Trust to recover from this devastation, as well as offering support at other local sites.
"The Community Champions funding helped us to get back on our feet and deliver our educational programme," explained Senior Communications Officer, Rachel Shaw."
We're both membership organisations and to have the support of another Lincolnshire based membership organisation was a way of saying 'we are here for you'" Rachel added.
2017- Lindsey Lodge in North Lincolnshire
Lindsey Lodge provides specialist care across the whole of North Lincolnshire to patients with life-limiting conditions and support for families and carers during their loved one's illness and into the bereavement period.
As a charity, the care they offer is free, and they rely on the generosity of local people and organisations to fund their work, which costs £4.4 million each year. Lindsey Lodge has received a total of £5,786.57 over the years, through our Community Champions scheme.
A spokesperson for Lindsey Lodge said: “We feel very privileged to have been chosen as Community Champions, having been amongst some amazing groups and charities. We love our local community and supporters, they know they are helping people locally because 100% of everything raised comes straight into the hospice”
2018 - Friendship at home in North East Lincolnshire
Set on combatting loneliness, the group arranges bingo, coffee mornings, chair exercise classes, social clubs and more. They also give medical support such as helping those recently discharged from hospital, or suffering with memory loss.
Additionally, they ensure that elderly people are properly supported and in receipt of the proper financial support. They received £11,865.64, which helped them to continue their important work.
Lyse Stevenson, Operational Manager at Friendship at Home, said “It's extra special knowing the funds had been raised for local people by local people.
"The funding made a huge difference to so many older people as it gave them activities to get up in the morning for. The lasting legacy is that we now support over 900 older people with activities”
2019 - Isaac Newton Primary School
During 2021, we fundraised for 190 local breakfast clubs through our Community Champions scheme, raising an exceptional £221,275. This has enabled us to guarantee support for these groups until August 2024.
For Isaac Newton Primary School in Grantham, this support is critical to the running of their breakfast club.
The school serves up a range of healthy breakfast options, from eggs on toast to fruit and yogurts, and caters to around 35-40 children every day. Once the children have eaten, they can play or draw away from the table.
David Milner, Head Teacher at Isaac Newton Primary School, said: “Our breakfast club is a really good soft start to the day for the children, it’s a nurturing environment that gets them ready for school."
2020 - Lincolnshire Emergency Medical Response (LEMR)
The group, which is formed entirely of volunteers, assists East Midlands Ambulance Service by responding to 999 calls. They received £4896.48 in 2020, which they used to ensure that each responder was provided with a cold weather jacket, keeping them warm when they’re caring for patients in the cold.
Most of the team are currently serving within the RAF, however there are a few people who are no longer part of the military but continue to volunteer.
Matt Bailey, Operations Manager at LEMR, said: “We never know what job we’re going to next; it could be a child, it could be an adult, it’s always someone’s family member or loved one. Our whole team dedicates so much time to not only responding, but also fundraising and training to ensure that we have all the equipment and skills to give the best possible care to every single patient.”
2021 - Old Wood Organic in Lincoln
Old Wood Organic Farm are a “no dig” organic farm that produces fruit, vegetables and herbs. Their aim is to make their farm accessible for everyone.
They were a Community Champion during 2021, and received £10,058. This funding was used for the woodchip to make the pathway to the farm accessible.
They were also able to sort out the compost toilet and have submitted plans to develop and renovate the barn area, as well as putting in a request for a tree survey.
2022 - Tonic Health in South Holland
Tonic Health is health and wellbeing charity that provides support to vulnerable people through projects and services such as the Community Cafe, Tea and Toast mornings, listening and signposting services, and the Night Light Cafe.
The group received £3,642, which was put towards supporting the Night Light Cafe, providing mental health support out of hours.
Ruth Taplin, Safe Places Co-ordinator at Tonic Health said: “We weren’t expecting the amount of funding we received, it was amazing. We all work so hard and care deeply about the people who use our services, so we’re extremely proud that our organisation has been chosen as one to highlight in the Community Champions celebration.”
27 - East Lindsey
18 - Boston Borough
28 - Newark & Notts
20 - City of Lincoln
27 - North & South Kesteven
27 - West Lindsey
18 - North East Lincs
15 - North Lincs
27 - South Holland
£652,000 - East Lindsey
£247,000 - Boston Borough
£385,000 - Newark & Notts
£683,000 - City of Lincoln
£813,000 - North & South Kesteven
£660,000 - West Lindsey
£243,000 - North East Lincs
£214,000 - North Lincs
£403,000 - South Holland
382 - East Lindsey
154 - Boston Borough
294 - Newark & Notts
340 - City of Lincoln
437 - North & South Kesteven
374 - West Lindsey
169 - North East Lincs
209 - North Lincs
268 - South Holland
How are we celebrating our 10 year anniversary?
You can find us at many summer shows across the county, from May to September, promoting Community Champions - why not pop down and say hello?
Keep an eye out for our online member competition we'll be running in July. You'll have a chance to win £100 for your chosen charity and £50 for yourself.
Make sure you're following and keeping up to date with our social media channels. We'll be posting all the latest updates, fundraising events and more on our platforms. You can find us on: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and TikTok.
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