THE 150th anniversary celebrations of Chipping Norton Co-operative store has been marked with the launch of an exclusive charity shopping bag.

All proceeds from the 'Bag for Life' initiative will be donated to the Chipping Norton Museum to help maintain its running costs as it relies on external funding.

The bag is adorned with vintage photographs from the store's past, including the original shop front and images of horse drawn carts which were once used to deliver coal to the store.

The High Street-based museum houses a large collection of artefacts including a teapot which was presented to Edie Clark for her long service in the co-op in Chipping Norton during its early years.

The launch is part of Your Local Co-op’s continued commitment to making a positive impact to the local community. As well as lending a helping hand to local attractions like the museum, the store also rewards local residents.

Most recently, colleagues presented loyal customer Marcus Smith with a £200 cheque after he completed an online customer feedback survey. He donated half of his winnings to local community group Chipping Norton Lions, to provide five food parcels to elderly residents in the area.

Pauline Watkins, curator of Chipping Norton Museum, said: “The Chipping Norton Food store has reached a great milestone achievement having been in the town for 150 years, and we’re proud to work in partnership with the team to celebrate the area’s history.

“We’re planning to use the money from the bag donations to buy metal boxes to display Reverend Ralph Mann’s family index cards, which were recently bequeathed to us. He was a prominent local figure, who was formerly head of history at Chipping Norton School before being ordained as a Church of England priest.”

Adam Quinton, manager at Your Local Co-op in Chipping Norton, said: “Chipping Norton Museum is a valued community hub and highlights the rich history of the area. Our new ‘Bag for Life’ was not only launched to celebrate our anniversary, but to lend a helping hand in order to keep these vital parts of our community thriving.

“This new initiative complements our online customer feedback survey where we reward customers for their views. We love working in Chipping Norton and are happy to be able to give back to our local community.”