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United front drives society right to the top

29/11/2006

WITH its head office in Sandbrook Park, Rochdale, United Co-operatives is the most successful Co-operative society in the UK.

Four of its five major businesses - food, travel, pharmacies and funerals - are represented in the Rochdale area. The fifth is the Sunwin Motor Group, which runs car dealerships in Lancashire, West Yorkshire and the East Midlands.

United is the largest operator of convenience stores in the north of England, with an ongoing programme of store refurbishment and improvement, while its travel business is the most diverse in the UK, including websites, call centres and homeworkers, as well as high street branches.

The number of pharmacies is growing fast and the range of services offered is also expanding all the time.

Today many minor ailments can be treated by a pharmacist, rather than the patient having to join a queue at a doctors' surgery.

The Society moved to Sandbrook Park in 2004 following the merger of the former United Norwest and Yorkshire societies to form United Co-operatives.

A new purpose-built head office was created with a wide range of environmental feature and housing about 80 staff.

United is determined to create and maintain close links with the communities it serves.

A major means of achieving this is the Co-operative Foundation, launched in 2000 and solely funded by United.

In the last six years many good causes have benefited from grants from the foundation.