For this year’s Co-op Fortnight (22 June- 5July), apex body Co-operatives UK is encouraging people across the country to join a co-op.
Coordinated by Co-operatives UK, the Fortnight aims to raise awareness about the co-operative business model. Head of communications and marketing Wendy Carter said: “Co-ops are so diverse, but the one thing that binds us all together is that we all have members who have a say in how our organisations are run.
“This Co-op Fortnight we’re shining a spotlight on who our members are and why they join co-ops, with a strong call to action to encourage more people to join a co-op.”
Co-operatives UK is calling on co-ops and other organisations to start planning membership recruitment and engagement activities for the two-week summer campaign. It is also offering a series of free resources to its members, which will help them promote the Fortnight. These include stickers, posters, a campaign video, template press releases and images for social media that co-ops can adapt to feature their own members. Co-ops can also take it to social media to post about the Fortnight using the hashtag #JoinACoop.
Ms Carter added: “We’d love co-ops of all types and sizes to start thinking about how they can get involved – it might be choosing one member to say why they joined the co-op, perhaps writing a blog or sharing their story on social media, having a celebration event for existing members to encourage them to get more involved, or planning a member recruitment campaign. We’ll be featuring a wide range of members, from worker-owners to community share investors and retail co-op customers in our communications.”
The Fortnight will be celebrated between 22 June and 5 July.
