Following the successful launch of In Your Area and Clean Up Britain’s Don’t Trash Our Future in July, Central England Co-op is partnering with Reach’s community platform and the NGO to galvanise the retailer’s members and customers to help keep their local area tidy ahead of World Clean Up Day.
The partnership kicks off in stores on 9 September in areas far afield as Derbyshire, Leicestershire, Midlands, Northamptonshire, Nottinghamshire, Peterborough and South Yorkshire.
The campaign has two aims: to increase the maximum punishment for littering to a £1,000 fine or 100 hours of supervised community litter picking and to make it compulsory for local authorities to enforce the law on littering.
The independent retail co-operative’s stores will carry display posters and branding on in-store digital screens. Audio content with JLS singer and farmer JB Gill will run across the Co-op’s in-store radio and Don’t Trash Our Future content will be hosted on the Co-Op’s social media channels and websites. To coincide with World Clean Up Day (19 September) the Don’t Trash Our Future van will also visit selected stores in September and the Co-op Central England team will be organising community litter picking events. Editorial content will also run across In Your Area and Reach’s live network of sites.
The retailer, which has 262 stores across central England, already makes a major interest in the communities it serves and a key part of every decision it makes is based around making a real difference for local people including taking care of the environment.
Don’t Trash Our Future has already been backed by high profile names such as JLS singer turned farmer JB Gill, Clean Britain patron Jeremy Paxman, broadcaster and animal rights campaigner Clare Balding and her partner Alice Arnold and television presenter Gabby Logan and her husband former Scottish rugby star Kenny.
Ed Walker, editor-in-chief of InYourArea.co.uk, said: “The Co-op is the perfect partner for In Your Area and Clean Up Britain to tackle the country’s litter and waste epidemic. With their community-focused ethos, it made sense to join forces and amplify a vital message.”
Central England Co-op Store Manager, Natalie Smith added: “We are committed to putting the co-operative values and principles into practice in everything we do and that includes being environmentally responsible. This is why we have joined forces with In Your Area to support this great campaign and are asking shoppers to back in any way they can and to help us come together and make a major difference.”
