Credit Unions

Photograph: money bank Credit unions are local saving and loan co-operatives that provide financial services to a particular community or workplace. This community or workplace is defined by a common bond and is legally registered. There are 13 credit unions in Lancashire with a range of common bonds. Credit unions are membership based financial organisations and when you open an account with a credit union you immediately become a member and owner of the firm. This not only provides you with excellent financial services you are entitled to vote at the Annual General Meeting, stand as a director or a committee member.

Credit unions along with banks and building societies are registered with the Financial Services Authority (FSA) as deposit takers and as such are highly regulated so you can be confident that your money is safe in a credit union.

As a member of a credit union you become part of an international co-operative movement operating in 91 countries where credit unions provide affordable financial services to more than 130 million people worldwide.

The credit unions operating in Lancashire are:

Morecambe Bay Credit Union, serves the district of Lancaster and Morecambe, Tel: 01524 411240
Fleetwood and District Credit Union, serves the Fleetwood and District , Tel: 01253 777535
Preston Credit Union serves the city of Preston, Tel: 01772 556738
Mid Rossendale Credit Union, servies Rossendale, Hyndburn and Accrington, Tel: 01706 260478
Bacup Credit Union, serves Rossendale, Hyndburn and Accrington, Tel: 0706 601809
HHH Credit Union, serves Rossendale, Hyndburn and Accrington, Tel: 01706 215082
Burnley Area Community Credit Union, serves the borough of Burnley, Tel: 01282 685151
Burnley West Credit Union, which serves a small area of the town
Pendle Community Credit Union, serves the borough of Pendle, Tel: 01282 616777
Lancashire County Council Credit Union, serves everyone who works for Lancashire County Council, Tel: 01772 262296
Blues and Twos Credit Union, serves everyone who is employed, retired or members of the same household as the three Emergency Services (Police, Fire and Ambulance) and County Council employees in the counties of Lancashire and Cumbria, Tel: 01772 618833
First Rate Credit Union seves everyone in the UK who works for BAE Systems, Tel: 01772 854161
The Enterprise the Business Credit Unions which serves small businesses throughout the UK, Tel: 01524 415666

LCDL is pleased to be able to work with local credit unions so that affordable financial services are available to everyone who lives or works in Lancashire.

Some of our Lancashire success stories...

Brighter Futures

Brighter Futures workshop (BFW) was developed with the support of LCDL in 2005. BFW is a charity set up to repair and maintain mobility equipment for people with disabilities and to offer employment and training opportunity for disabled people.

The impact of the work of Brighter Futures has been extraordinary. The workshop is based on an industrial park in Skelmersdale thus offering a real work environment for the disabled people employed at the charity. The basis of the charity is to be self funding through trading so the young people work under the same pressure of timescale, value for money, etc as any other business. The difference being any profit made by the charity is ploughed back into the firm for the benefit of people with disabilities.

Because this is a real work environment the young people attending the workshop are highly motivated. Indeed one young man, who had a zero school attendance, has a 100% attendance at the workshop.

Adult and Community Services have now agreed additional places with the charity. The Acorn Trust is also negotiating with the charity to provide places for their young people. Disabled older people are also seeking placements at the workshop. The workshop has also been approved to the NHS preferred tender list which also create additional demand. The result of this is that the current workshop is no longer big enough.

To add to these demands, word of the success of the workshop has attracted interest from across the Shop mobility network throughout the UK with the result that staff is taking time out from their day-to-day work to inform visitors about their work. Areas already keen to replicate the workshops are Birkenhead, Blackburn, Hampshire etc. This may lead to franchising opportunities.

Brighter Future workshop is a role model for a true social enterprise gaining recognition from both the statuary authority and private sector.

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