By Rebecca Harvey, Anca Voinea and Alice Toomer-McAlpine
International conflict and Covid continue to drive economic pressures such as the cost of living crisis and energy prices, bringing fears of a recession, but the UK’s co-op sector has reasons to be optimistic in the New Year.
A recent report from Co-operatives UK found that the number of independent co-ops in the UK rose 1.1% in 2022, in contrast with the number of businesses in general, which fell by 1.7%.
Member relations co-ordinator Gareth Wright highlights housing and energy as particularly strong sectors of the movement, in terms of numbers and activity, as well as new registrations coming through. This is in part due to the co-op sector responding to the needs of society, and communities feeling more empowered to take action, he says.
“I think there’s been a long slow burn of communities realising they can do things for themselves, whereas in the past, they may not have felt as empowered to be able to do so […] The tools are there, they are tried and tested.”
Fledgling co-ops now have access to a range of advice options, too, with Co-operatives UK receiving continued support from the Co-op Bank to help groups incorporate, initiatives such as the Barefoot Co-op Development programme training up the next generation of co-op development practitioners, and the continued hard work of well-established co-op development agencies.
“There’s a good network of development advisors out there now,” says Wright, adding that greater visibility of the co-op model across the UK is also playing a part.
“With every great news story and piece of press about a group that installs panels on a local school or community building, or takes over the village shop or pub, co-ops are becoming more visible. And they are good news stories, too. I think in general, we’re seeing a greater awareness of co-ops.”