Midcounties Co-operative Agrees in Principle To Transfer Its Funeralcare Business to Central England Co-operative

• 50 Midcounties funeral homes transferring to Central England.
• CEC will expand its footprint in the Midlands, the Southwest, and Southeast of England.

Central England Co-operative (CEC) and The Midcounties Co-operative (Midcounties) have agreed the terms of a transaction that will consolidate the majority of Midcounties’ Funeralcare business into the larger CEC Funeralcare operation. 

The transfer will allow CEC to strengthen and build upon its highly regarded funeral services business, bringing the number of homes operated by CEC to 182, and extending CEC’s offering to other areas of the Midlands, the Southwest, and Southeast of England.  This will allow CEC's Funeralcare offering to reach a greater number of members and clients.

The transaction will see 50 Midcounties funeral homes and two vehicle logistics sites, as well as Midcounties' Pre-Paid Funeral Plan Business, transfer to CEC. Under the agreement, 252 colleagues who work in Midcounties Funeralcare will join CEC, subject to consultation once the transaction is completed. A similar arrangement between the two Societies resulted in CEC’s travel business transferring to Midcounties in 2020. 

For its part, Midcounties will continue to strengthen its strategic focus and investment on its Travel, Food, Childcare, Utilities and Healthcare services, which are core to it member’s day-to-day needs. The Society plans to double the size of its childcare business over the next 5 years, and to build on its leading community Energy offering while also opening 50 new food stores and significantly investing in new digital services across its trading groups.

The transaction is subject to approval by the CMA, which is expected to take several weeks, and during that time both the Midcounties and CEC Funeralcare businesses will continue to operate as normal. Midcounties will use this time to consult with those colleagues affected by the agreement, as well as working to find solutions for the 17 Midcounties funeral homes not included in the proposed transfer.

Debbie Robinson, Chief Executive of Central England Co-operative, said:

“Subject to clearance from the CMA, on behalf of Central England Society, our Board, and members, I look forwarding to welcoming all Midcounties Funeralcare colleagues, clients, and members.

We feel great respect and appreciation for the care that those involved in Funeralcare have shown for the deceased, and the support they have offered to bereaved families, over the last year especially.

We will work hard as a Society to continue to offer the highest standards of care and support to our members, clients, and our new team members, in providing accessible, relevant funeral services for all."

Phil Ponsonby, Group Chief Executive of the Midcounties Co-operative, said:

“We’re enormously proud and thankful for the commitment of our Funeralcare colleagues, particularly during the last year when they have shown remarkable strength and versatility to support the bereaved in such challenging times.

We have made a number of significant strategic investments in our core businesses in recent months, with acquisitions and new openings in travel, food retail and childcare, and have been considering the best way to ensure a strong and sustainable co-operative offering for our Funeralcare clients. Central England operates a Funeralcare offering twice the size of Midcounties and if this transfer is approved, our Board feel it will result in greater investment and focus for our homes and significant support for our colleagues to take the business forward.

Crucially, Central England shares our co-operative values and, like us, puts its members and colleagues at the heart of everything it does. Therefore, it was clear that this agreement would represent the best outcome for our members, clients, and colleagues.”

The Midcounties homes and vehicle logistics centres (VLC) that will transfer to CEC if the agreement is approved are:

1. Whitehouse Common, Sutton Coldfield.
2. Brownhills
3. Lichfield
4. Cannock
5. Penkridge
6. Rugeley
7. Walsall
8. Bloxwich
9. Rushall
10. Wednesbury
11. Willenhall
12. Sedgley
13. Thomas Ely, Willenhall
14. Wednesfield
15. Coseley
16. Dudley
17. Bilston
18. Penn Road
19. Oxley
20. Wolverhampton
21. Tettenhall
22. Codsall
23. Kidderminster
24. Stourport Bridge Street
25. Stourbridge
26. Wombourne
27. Halesowen
28. Kingswinford
29. Blackbird Leys
30. Carterton
31. Kidlington
32. Oxford
33. Abingdon
34. Didcot
35. Thame
36. Witney
37. Headington
38. Summertown
39. Banbury
40. Bicester
41. Cinderford
42. Cheltenham
43. Gloucester
44. Stonehouse
45. Churchdown
46. Grove
47. Highworth
48. Swindon Old Town
49. Swindon Cricklade Road
50. Cirencester
51. Aldridge VLC
52. Watery Lane VLC