THE proposed merger between West Midlands Co-op and Oxford, Swindon and Gloucester Society has cleared its final hurdle and will become a reality next month. At a confirmatory meeting in Walsall, West Midlands Co-op members voted unanimously to adopt a necessary rule change needed for the merger to go ahead. OSG members also voted overwhelmingly in favour of the merger at a series of meetings last month. The new society - as yet unnamed - will become effective on 24 September, creating the ...

THE proposed merger between West Midlands Co-op and Oxford, Swindon & Gloucester Society has been given a massive thumbs-up by West Midlands members, who have voted overwhelmingly in favour of the plan. At a meeting in Walsall earlier this week, 99 per cent of the 224 members who attended backed the directors' decision to recommend the merger. The proposed combined society will create the fourth largest co-op in the UK with a turnover of £ 500 million.

West Midlands Co-op has taken democracy to its members by staging two regional meetings for people who find its main AGM in Walsall is too far away. The meetings, in Shrewsbury and Kidderminster, gave members an opportunity to take a more active part in the decision-making process. Ben Reid, Chief Executive of West Midlands Co-op, said: "By holding meetings in Shropshire and Wyre Forest we are encouraging more people to have a democratic input into the development of West Midlands Co-op.

A NEW West Midlands Co-op supermarket is set to join the technology super-highway when it opens later this month, with self-scanning checkouts and digital pricing displays. The 10,000 sq ft store in Bicton Heath, Shrewsbury, represents a £ 1 million investment and has created more than 50 new jobs. Four U-Scan checkouts will use the latest shopping technology to process goods without customers needing to queue for a checkout assistant. Payment can then be made by card or cash using a ...