Corporation Street Co-Op building put up for sale...

[dutchman]

Shutters come down as shoppers say goodbye to city centre Co-op



The shutters have finally come down on Coventry’s city centre Co-op store which closed for the final time this afternoon.

There was no fanfare as the final few shoppers left the Corporation Stree t store which first opened almost exactly 59 years ago today.

A small number of shoppers gathered next to the closing down signs to lament the decision to axe the historic store - many of whom had been shopping there for decades.

Hazel Mills, aged 84, started working for the Co-op in Coventry when she was just 14.

“I was hoping a few of the old staff might come down today but I can’t see anyone,” she said.

“There’s nothing in the city centre these days.”

One of the last shoppers to leave the store, Francis Lewis, 59, from Coundon, was born at around the same time the shop opened.

“I came here today to see what they had left. I haven’t got my trolley though, if I did I would have got a desk fan.”

Another of the final shoppers to leave the store, Mary Jones, 80, from Whoberley , said: “I’m very sad. All the best shops have gone.

“I know there’s a Co-op food shop in Earlsdon but I’ll have to catch two buses to get there.”

Ted Gallagher, 75, said: “I was one of the last customers today and I was one of the last customers at the cafe.

“I had fish and chips and a side salad - it was absolutely lovely.”

Despite the fond memories there was little room for sentiment as the store was shut for the final time, with a security guard manning the doors from 12.55pm.

Only a few electrical items remained while a variety of signs and even a cardboard cut out of Dr Hilary Jones were taken during the morning.

Architects say that the building, which has survived the Blitz and numerous redevelopments, won’t be knocked down.

They say it has potential for a number of uses.

Speaking earlier Ali Kurji, chief executive, Heart of England Co-operative Society, said: “It is with great regret that the board has taken this decision and indeed it is one which has certainly not been taken lightly.

“However the retail environment has become increasingly challenging and it is vital that we take steps to safeguard the Society’s position to ensure the business continues to be sustainable.”

[rebbonk]

I'll bet that there were a few tears shed.

[dutchman]

Co-op's Santa's Sleigh Ride to move to Coventry Transport Museum



Santa’s sleigh ride - which has delighted generations of children in Coventry for nearly 60 years - will be running as normal this year after the attraction found a new home.

It was feared part of the magic of Christmas in Coventry would be lost due to the recent closure of the landmark Co-op store.

The Co-op had run the ride at the Corporation Street store since the mid-1950s.

But Culture Coventry, which runs Coventry Transport Museum, has stepped in to ensure the festive tradition will live on.

Families will now be able to enjoy Santa’s sleigh ride from November 19 through till Christmas at the museum in Millennium Place.

The ride creates the illusion of flying through the air to Lapland, where children are then greeted by Santa in his famous grotto.

Ali Kurji, chief executive of the Heart of England Co-operative Society, said: “The sleigh ride is a much loved institution in Coventry, allowing three generations of children to experience the magic of Lapland over the past 59 years.

“We are delighted to donate the sleigh to Culture Coventry which we feel is the perfect home for it. It allows the ride to stay in Coventry and we are pleased to see our donation will be marked with a commemorative plaque inside the museum.”

Gary Hall, chief executive of Culture Coventry, said: “We are absolutely thrilled that Culture Coventry will be the new custodians of the Co-op sleigh ride.

“When the Co-op spoke to us about donating the sleigh, we were very happy that we were able to find a way to help.

“For so many years families have enjoyed the magic and the tradition that it brings.

“It conjures up many happy memories of Christmas times spent with loved ones, and it seems only fitting that Culture Coventry, who look after so many of the city’s much loved treasures, should find a home for this wonderful piece of Coventry history.

“We realise how important the sleigh is for thousands of people across Coventry and Warwickshire and we feel privileged and delighted to announce that visitors will be able to enjoy this much loved local treasure at Coventry Transport Museum this Christmas.”

There was previously an online campaign called Keep the Co-op Sleigh Ride Going.

[dutchman]

An Elfin safety inspector ensures the ride goes smoothly...

[dutchman]

Santa's Sleigh Ride opens after move to Coventry Transport Museum



'Tis the season to be jolly as Coventry’s iconic Santa’s Sleigh Ride opens to the public at its new home.

The ride, a part of Christmas for generations of children in the region, faced an uncertain future when the Co-op closed its doors in Corporation Street last month.

In a special ceremony at Coventry Transport Museum in Millenium Place today, excited crowds gathered for the opening of this year’s sleigh ride.

A commemorative plaque was unveiled heralding the latest chapter in the festive ride’s history after it found a new home at the city centre museum.

It had been a fixture at the Heart of England Co-operative department store for 59 years.

The ride takes children on a magical journey where they have the chance to meet Santa in his grotto.

Earlier this year, rumours emerged that Culture Coventry were looking into taking over the ride.

It was hinted that the ride could either be housed at The Herbert or the Transport Museum.

In October, an announcement was finally made that the ride would run as normal but at the Transport Museum.

Following the announcement, Gary Hall, chief executive of Culture Coventry, told the Telegraph: “We are absolutely thrilled that Culture Coventry will be the new custodians of the Co-op sleigh ride.

“When the Co-op spoke to us about donating the sleigh, we were very happy that we were able to find a way to help."

The sleigh ride will now be open until Wednesday, December 23.

Between now and December 11, it will run from 10am to 4.30pm. The attraction will then be open from 10am to 5pm until December 23.

Tickets cost £5 for children and £1 for accompanying adults and can only be paid for in cash.

[dutchman]

Santa's sleigh ride more popular than ever as thousands queue up at Coventry Transport Museum



Santa’s sleigh ride is back and more popular than ever with thousands queueing up for the iconic attraction which was nearly lost to Coventry.

Now in its 58th year, the one-time Christmas regular at the former Co-op has been drawing massive crowds at its new home in Coventry Transport Museum.

The festive favourite was in peril earlier this year with the closure of the city department store but the ride is now enjoying a new lease of life.

Andy Hewitt, facilities manager at the city centre museum, said once the schools broke up for Christmas there have been queues every day.

“It’s massively successful,” he said. “It’s actually been busier than Co-op ever had.

“It’s been into the thousands who have been on the sleigh this Christmas.

“There were 12 adults and four kids on it yesterday – I think it was just an excuse!”

He said it was looking likely the ride would stay on at the museum after it was donated by the Co-op. And nine former department store staff have moved over to the museum to help behind the scenes on the ride.

Lesley Woolcock, who worked at Co-op for 26 years, said: “It was very important we didn’t lose the sleigh ride because it’s such a big part of the store.

“It’s great to see it passed on – all my family have been on the ride and I remember going on myself as a child.”

Jayne Judge [pictured top] was lining up to go on the sleigh with her daughter Nicola Canning, 31, and two grandchildren Jorja, nine and Finley, five, all from Cheylesmore.

“I haven’t been on it since I was a child, now we’re bringing the grandchildren,” she said. “It was magical and fascinating, it’s part of childhood memories and Coventry’s history.”

Paula Young, 38, from Wyken, who had brought her children Teddy, five, and Violet, two, said: “Most people from Coventry had been on it as a child, it seems so real.”

The ride takes children on a journey past snowcapped trees before arriving to meet Santa in his grotto.

• The sleigh ride runs until Wednesday, December 23. Admission to the museum is free but sleigh ride tickets cost £5 for children and £1 for accompanying adults.

[Melisandre]

[dutchman]

Co-op employee who lost job when Coventry store shut loses unfair dismissal claim

A warehouse worker who lost his job with dozens of others after Coventry’s Co-op store shut up shop last year has lost a legal claim for unfair dismissal.

The test case at Birmingham Employment Tribunal was brought by Ashwin Rathod, of Radford, and its failure will come as a blow to other former Co-op employees who are understood to have similar claims in the pipeline.

The landmark store closed last October after 59 years amidst claims it was making a substantial loss.

Dozens of staff lost their jobs.

Other stores in Nuneaton, Bedworth, Rugby, Leamington and Atherstone were also shut leading to significant job losses.

Co-op bosses said at the time that the stores were no longer viable “due to the rise of online shopping and the challenging retail environment.”

Mr Rathod, who was a member of the Union of Shop, Distributive & Allied Workers, known as USDAW, made his unfair dismissal claim against Heart of England Co-operative Society Ltd of Nuneaton.

He told tribunal judge Miss Victoria Dean that he believed he should have been found another position within the Co-op organisation.

He said he had previous experience with the Co-op’s funeral business and that he could have been found an appointment within that department.

Mr Rathod worked for the Co-op for seven years and was said to have been a good worker, although he alleged he had been bullied at one stage by one of his bosses.

The respondents opposed Mr Rathod’s claim and said he had accepted a redundancy payment.

After a two day hearing Miss Dean rejected his claim.

Miss Dean said the Co-op store had closed following “significant losses” and that employees had been warned about the impending closure and that consultations with the union and workers had taken place.

She described Mr Rathod as reliable, honest and a good worker and appreciated he wanted to be re-deployed elsewhere within the Co-op business.

But she said evidence had shown that Mr Rathod preferred to take a redundancy payment and because of that his legal claim had failed.

Mr Rathod said he was disappointed with the decision.

[rebbonk]

That case was a waste of both time and money.

[dutchman]

Post-war Coventry Co-op building to be listed after bulldoze threat for student flats



COVENTRY’S historic landmark former Co-op building in the city centre is set to be listed for possible protection because of its post-war historic importance.

Coventry City Council’s planning committee is expected on Thursday to add the former Co-op store in Corporation Street to the list of buildings of local architectural or historical interest.

While such measures are not an ultimate protection from bulldozers or drastic renovation, it is considered the building helps tell the tale of the city centre’s contemporaneously vaunted but since controversial rebuilding after the Coventry Blitz.

One of the city’s largest and oldest stores was closed last year as a victim of flagging city centre trade in an internet era, and EDG Property bought the site.

No planning applications have been received, although the council says ‘prospective buyers’ have stated an intention to demolish the building to erect two 12-storey towers of student accommodation.

An agenda document by the council’s conservation and archaeology Officer Chris Patrick recommends councillors on the planning committee approve the listing.

He says: “The Coop store is considered to be a heritage asset of local significance to Coventry and worthy of being added to the local list for the following reasons:

“i. it is one of the major buildings of Coventry city centre’s post-war reconstruction;

ii. it follows the Scandinavian architectural style, proportions and materials prescribed by Donald Gibson’s City Architects Department and contributes to the distinctive uniform style of post-war Coventry;

iii. it is a little altered example of a 1950s department store and still retains its original shopfront, upper floor windows and parapet signage; and

iv. the pillars of the colonnade are decorated with inscribed designs by John Skelton, who is a significant artist and letter-carver, and are important examples of the city’s desire to incorporate public art and architecture.”

Mr Patrick adds: “It has not been possible to inspect the interior since the store closed.

“At the time of its closure it had a relatively modern fit out but original features may survive behind stud walls and suspended ceilings.

“The exterior of the building has seen little alteration and still retains its original shopfront and signage, it is probably the most complete and unaltered post-war shopfront in the city centre.

“The columns along the street feature a series of incised line carvings by John Skelton assisted by John Trowbridge, depicting the rebuilding of the city and the activities of the Co-op organisation including holiday facilities for employees, grocery provision, transport and coal, flower seeds and nursery supplies.

“The subject matter was predetermined by the architect although the requirement was set by the city council as part of their desire to incorporate public art in the architecture of the city centre.”

He added that, if listed, the building would become subject to protections in the Coventry Development Plan which state that development involving the partial or complete loss of such a building will be permitted ‘only if the benefits of the development

can be shown to outweigh any resulting harm, or that no realistic alternative for its survival can be secured’.

He adds: “It is broadly contemporary with the early wave of construction in the city centre along with Broadgate House, Broadgate (Donald Gibson 1948-53); Owen Owen, Broadgate (Hellberg Harris 1952-54); Marks and Spencer, Upper Precinct (Norman Jones and Sons & Rigby 1953-55); BHS, Upper Precinct (George Coles 1951-55) and Woolworths, Lower Precinct (Harold Winbourne, Woolworths staff architect 1952-54).

“The Co-op was designed by G S Hay the CWS staff architect and built between 1954-56.”