Members of Plunkett UK partner, OurCoop, completed the Chilterns Challenge, raising over £3,000 to help communities save and run vital local businesses through community ownership.
On Friday 17 July, Becci Britland, Jack Twigg, Craig Price, Maryann Denfhy and Jane Avery took on the Chilterns Challenge. Covering 23 miles, more than 52,000 steps and enduring temperatures of over 30°C, the team completed the trek through the Chiltern Hills in 11.5 hours.
Hannah Barrett, Partnerships Manager at Plunkett UK, said: “We are so grateful to the team at OurCoop for supporting Plunkett by taking on this momentous challenge.
“£2,500 is the average cost of supporting a community group from an initial idea through to setting up and running their own community business. By raising this amount, the team has helped to secure a vital community asset for the future: a place that creates social connection, reduces isolation and loneliness, provides employment opportunities and boosts the local economy.”
At the start line!
Maryann Denfhy, OurCoop, said: “OurCoop is proud to support our partner, Plunkett UK, to raise vital funds by taking part in their Chilterns Challenge.
“There is no doubt that the heat made it harder, but all the more rewarding when we reached the end point. So much so, that the team are all looking forward to finding out where next year’s fundraising challenge will take us!”
Every pound raised will help Plunkett continue supporting communities across the UK to protect and preserve vital local assets. For more than 100 years, we have helped communities save and run businesses including pubs, shops, farms, and woodlands through community ownership.
The need for this support continues to grow. Each year, communities face the loss of valued businesses and services that provide not only goods and amenities but also important opportunities for social connection. Community-owned businesses are helping to reverse this trend, creating welcoming spaces, supporting local economies, tackling loneliness and providing opportunities for employment, training and volunteering.
Funding in action
The impact of this support can be seen at places such as The Rising Sun in Woodcroft, Gloucestershire, a community-owned pub and Plunkett member that received business support through funding from the Co-operative Retail Society Network.
When the village faced losing its only remaining facility, local people came together to secure its future. Since reopening under community ownership, the pub has become much more than a place to eat and drink.
At the heart of its community offer is the 4Cs group, standing for Company, Chat, Cake and Coffee, which was established to combat social isolation. The monthly gathering now regularly attracts between 40 and 50 people and has even helped reconnect friends who had not seen one another for decades.
At the 4Cs!
From (left – right) – Maryann Denfhy, Bernadette Connor and Becci Becci Britland from OurCoop
Co-ops supporting co-ops
The fundraiser demonstrates the co-operative principle of “co-operation among co-operatives” in action. OurCoop, formed through the merger of Central Co-op and Midcounties Co-op in January 2026, and is a member of the Co-operative Retail Society Network (CRSN), a unique collaboration between Plunkett UK and a growing number of co-operative retail societies.
The partnership aims to grow the size and impact of the rural community-owned business sector and help the co-operative model flourish. Members of the CRSN provide funding, share co-operative and retail expertise, work together to raise the profile of community businesses and explore innovative ways to support the sector.
